Neoteny, Social Practice, and Meaning-Making

Cognitive neuroscience can shed new light on human symbol-making. In this chapter I address the origin of symbol-making from an evo-devo perspective and emphasize the role of human ‘neoteny’: the slowed and delayed physiological and somatic development of individuals. This development largely depends upon the quantity and quality of interpersonal relationships individuals establish with their adult peers. Neoteny, on the one hand, favours and facilitates the development of cognitive exapted qualities, like sophisticated forms of communication and symbolic expression, by reusing neural resources originally selected for other purposes. On the other, neoteny amplifies and prolongs learning and potentiates family relationships. Stronger family relationships potentiate the transfer of knowledge across generations, helping to build oral traditions, which, in turn, promote cultural practices. Capitalizing upon pragmatism, and social practice theory, I discuss the relationship between body, practice, and rituals and their bearing on the creation of symbolic objects and cultural artefacts.