| Chapter 1: | Instincts |
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decisions, many of which are for the purpose of gaining or maintaining status. Fashions, for example, represent an endless quest to emulate the fashion leaders, who change fashions regularly. People do so because being “in fashion” affects one’s social rank. But the quest absorbs resources that might be more useful to the group if devoted to other things.
The most obvious of the self-regarding instincts is self-preservation. It is a deep-seated instinct, common to all animals. It is likely that it is the most powerful of all instincts, but as countless acts of heroism large and small throughout history have demonstrated, it does not always override our parental bent. We have a strong desire to preserve our own lives, but not always at any cost.
Our proclivity for self-aggrandizement adds fuel to our tendency to make invidious comparisons, as we want to rank high in our social group. From an evolutionary standpoint, one might say that we want to be the leader of the pack, as that may aid our survival. In some situations self-aggrandizement may make us work harder to demonstrate our prowess. But it can take less helpful forms, as we may even do harm to others in order to improve our own standing. For example, self-aggrandizement can overwhelm parental instincts and can lead to the oppression of the young by the old. As Veblen wrote,
The tutelage of the elders takes something of an authoritative tone and blends self-aggrandizement with their quasi-parental solicitude, giving an institutional outcome which makes the young generation subservient to the elders, ostensibly for the mutual and collective good of both parties to the relation; if predatory or warlike exploit in any degree becomes