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Does Spite Advance Survival of a Species?

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Spiteis everywhere. It's as fresh as today's sports headlines as UConn readies to play Notre Dame for the women's basketball championship. Fighting Irish coach Muffet McGraw has acknowledged that there is hate between the two teams.

We see spite in the Arts and Letters, ranging from the  terrible feud between Lillian Hellman and Mary McCarthy,to the tremendous emphasis in rap on so-called beefs between artists who act out their spite in the music they produce. 

It's tough to find even a religious tradition completely cleansed of spite. Even Jesus cursed a fig treeand denounced lawyers and scribes and Pharisees for their wickedness. 

And, in the animal kingdom, all you need to know is that elephants defecate into watering holes so that rival packs of elephants won't be able to use them. Now, that's spite.

GUESTS:

  • David Marcusis a professor of psychology at Washington State University
  • Rory Smead is an assistant professor of philosophy of biology at Northeastern University
  • Alan Abramowitz is the Alben W. Barkley Professor of Political Science at Emory University, and author of several books, including Senate Elections and The Disappearing Center

Colin McEnroe is a radio host, newspaper columnist, magazine writer, author, playwright, lecturer, moderator, college instructor and occasional singer. Colin can be reached at colin@ctpublic.org.
Chion Wolf is the host of Audacious with Chion Wolf on Connecticut Public.
Betsy started as an intern at WNPR in 2011 after earning a Master's Degree in American and Museum Studies from Trinity College. She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. She still produces shows with Colin and the team when her schedule allows.

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