Mythbusting: DIY Vs. Mis/Dis/Mal-Information

Fullermingjr:

I may be your token believer, but you have to admit, Star Trek, Tony Stark, and a lot of other “science myths” are fun aspects of telling some powerful – very human – stories! I know, I know – the worldview of many of these fictional universes generally support you all as “unbelievers” but human stories are human, regardless of who tells them. My question as a Theist is this: Why do many of the themes, values, practices, and even beliefs resonate with us all so well? Maybe they are echo’s of an evolutionary history. Regardless, TOS is still the greatest!

Greetings, Fullermingjr. I’ll attempt an answer.

Humans don’t carry themes, values, practices, or beliefs of stories in their genes and thus don’t carry them to the future by Evolution (i.e. descent with modification.)

But stories, when transmitted by spoken or written word, endure to the extent that they tie in with the experiences and thoughts of those who hear and read the story.

All stories have the same elements of Theme (which includes all the other things you listed) plus the Premise, Plot, Prose, and Characters. When people over time and across places understand and relate to all of these elements, and when they spread these stories, the stories become part of a cultural compendium or canon.

Plot in particular includes conflict and in Middle School English I learned there are three kinds of conflict: Man Against Nature, Man Against Man, and Man Against Himself. These three kinds of conflict have existed for as long as we humans have existed and indeed before we were humans, so that’s a big reason why stories endure and spread.

Star Trek:TOS was best, though there are elements and characters from The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Enterprise that are relatable too. I haven’t seen Discovery or Strange New Worlds, though.

Fullrermingjr:

So, from an atheistic perspective, our “nature” evolved in such a way that these experiences are universal? Is that what you are saying?

An important category distinction to make here:

Atheism is a philosophical position of non-belief in the existence of a supernatural being.

Evolution is a scientific explanation based on evidence on the development of living things, summed up as descent with modification.

Atheists or Theists who practice the Scientific Method can and do acknowledge Evolution.

As for whether conflict is a inevitable product of Evolution, conflict does occur involving living things, but the kind and extent of conflict depends on the interactions between living things and the non-living environment.

Relations between living things can be mutual and symbiotic as well as parasitic and predatory and not every relation of living things with non-living environment is a struggle, and living things don’t live long if their actions conflict with their own survival.

But when resources and space required for living grow short, living things have to share them, expand them, use less of them, substitute them, fight for them, or die.

Man at his best uses his mind to do the rest before it comes to a fight.