ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part describes political behavior can be looked upon as a biological phenomenon leading scholars to abandon the “simplistic dichotomy” between nature and culture that has influenced Western thought since the seventeenth century. It outlines a general theory of human life as a biological phenomenon by discussing genes, culture, and learning. The part explores an elaborate graphic presentation linking biological considerations with human society, culture, and language. It examines the impact of modern evolutionary biology on the roots of political philosophy. The part presents a broad familiarity with the critical dimensions of political theory and methodology as well as the emergence of biologically based public policy issues. It explains political analysts to not accept blindly a biological perspective that does not account for human purposive activities, and to be cautious about cross-species comparisons.
