St. Valentine was famous for supporting the Christians
during their persecution at the hands of the mighty Romans, circa 250AD. But what does neuroscience tell us about the
minds of those people who defend the underdog?
By Dr Samantha J. Brooks Ph.D.
Love is in the air again, and the shops are full of red
cards and gifts as we approach the 14th February – or St. Valentine’s Day – the
day that the great martyr died in 269AD.
Most of us associate Valentine’s Day with love and all things sweet and
romantic. This is because, according to
one story, when the Roman Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made
better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for
young men. But Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied
Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret.
However, when Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be
put to death. Were Valentine’s actions a true show of love – putting oneself
before another? Do his choices to rebel
against the Romans demonstrate the true nature of love? How is it that we can put ourselves in a position
to be persecuted ourselves? Are there any evolutionary benefits to this seemingly
altruistic behaviour?
Think of the persecution – throughout our recent history
– of black people, women, Jewish, Muslims, and of those people like Nelson
Mandela who were prepared to die to help save people from their struggles. Yet in 2019, as we approach St. Valentine’s
Day again, there appears to be a lack of universal altruism, as we seem more
intent than ever on satisfying our own desires at the expense of the planet and
of other people’s feelings. So what can
neuroscience tell us about the kind of selfless love that St. Valentine
champions? What are the neural
correlates of altruism, why do our brains sometimes act in this way, and is it
normal?
In his recent work, The Altruistic Brain, neuroscientist
Donald Pfaff sets out his Altruistic Brain Theory (ABT), which suggests that
human beings are “hardwired” to be good, just as we are “hardwired” to acquire
natural language(s). This means that our brains may be genetically predisposed
to function in a manner that prioritises the needs of the other before our own,
which could also be why John Donne famously quipped that no man is an
island. If the bells tolls for someone,
it also tolls for us. The philanthropic
view is an optimistic view of humanity, reflected in the behaviours of Warren
Buffett, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg donating large proportions of their
wealth, not to their children, but to social causes. However, others like Prof
Steven Pinker, who wrote the book Better Angels of our Nature, suggest that
human nature is rather prone to violence and Schadenfreude – experiencing
pleasure from others’ misfortune – and that it is only in recent years that we
have reduced this tendency to be so hostile.
So which is it? Are our brains
predisposed to philantrophy and love, or to violence and aggression?
To answer this question we might turn to Sigmund Freud’s
psychoanalysis, a field of neuroscientific The id stands for all
those selfish, childish desires we want to immediately satisfy, sometimes
aggressively at the expense of others.
It is associated with the unconscious dopaminergic drive system deep in
the mid-brain, where our passions and our animal tendencies are found. The superego represents what our parents, or
society have taught us, the idealogical right or wrong, and is found in the
prefrontal cortex – that part of the brain that allows us to hold in mind
perfectionistic beliefs about ourselves and the world around us. But perhaps the healthiest part of this mind
system – the ego – is a referee in the middle, keeping the two competing
factions (the id and superego) at bay, so that one is not more dominant than
the other. The part of the brain responsible
for the ego is called the anterior cingulate cortex. We cannot always be good, or in love, or
virtuous, nor can we go around being aggressive all the time. Sometimes it is right to act aggressively
when someone tries to attack, or not to love everybody all of the time, and
sometimes is it good to show you care.
It is often complicated to know which option is the best, but the
anterior cingulate referee tries to help us choose the right outcome in any
given situation.
study which views the human mind as
tripartite, comprising of the id, the ego and the superego, representing our
animal instincts, our reality and our perfectionistic personas respectively.
And the movement called Neuropsychoanalysis, led by UCT’s Professor Mark Solms
and colleagues, has got closer to pinpointing where in the brain these mental
compartments lie.
Given that our minds are dynamic – changing from moment to
moment to help us adapt to the demands of the environment – there is never any
hard and fast rule as to which is best.
However, we are social animals, and the root of altruism – like those
selfless acts carried out by St. Valentine – probably have a hidden, rewarding
value to us. The sceptics view of
altruism is that there is always something in it for us! Sending a card or
flowers or chocolates, or just showing our feelings to that special person in
our life may give us a comforting sense of security that we have a lifelong
companion. And as loving partners grow
together they begin to mimic behaviours and expressions that reinforce patterns
of behaviour. Such behaviour can be
linked to increased levels of a chemical called oxytocin in the brain, which
strengthens our ability to bond with another person, be it a baby or an
adult. And so while the id may be the
most powerful, unconscious force in our brains, directing our minds to satisfy
our basic urges, those who are better able to bond with others by performing
selfless acts may stand a better chance of surviving and thriving in society.
Had St. Valentine learned to bond with the Romans he might well have been able
to continue marrying couples in love while also sparing his own life!
What is quite clear though, as we approach St. Valentine’s
Day this year, is that the collective aggressive, self-serving, consumerist
mind appears to be dominant. It has led
to a rise in global warming, border-building, increased poverty, a rise in
cancer and illness, and a general sense of disorder across the planet. As such, perhaps we should not only think
about our loved ones this Valentine’s Day, but also what can we do, as
individuals, to love the Earth before we serve ourselves. Happy Valentine’s Day Harfielders!
Dr Samantha Brooks is a cognitive neuroscientist
specialising in the neural correlates of impulse control from eating disorders
to addiction. For more information on
neuroscience and to contact Samantha, see www.drsamanthabrooks.com
Click to read all previous articles by Dr Samantha J. Brooks Ph.D.
