(credit: yang yang, via Wikimedia Commons)

Another interesting example of a custom that is commonplace in some societies but not others is the one that trains men to shave their beards. In some cultures, men who are clean shaven are seen as being presentable, neat, and attractive. In other cultures, a man without a beard is seen as being weak or alien. In some cultures, men are forcibly shaved as a form of punishment. The fascinating questions come when we ask “Why?” Why is shaving done? Is there some survival advantage in some environments for men who were trained by their fathers to shave off their beards? For example, do men who shave daily appear younger or more attractive to women? Do they then reproduce more successfully and prolifically and thus pass their ways on to more progeny, especially the sons who watch them shave and so will do the same themselves one day?

                                         

Research on such shaving customs is sparse and inconclusive. However, what’s important to see is that asking questions about cultural morés and customs in terms of their possible advantages in the survival game entails thinking scientifically about morés in general. Under this view, none of our actions are trivial or meaningless. They all matter. Under this view, we can compare cultures, and the mundane rapidly becomes the fascinating.