Promiscuity and Cuckold

I recently wrote a post on the reasons why society, ie men, imprison women behind veils, fences, lattices and harems. The conclusion I reached then was that sexuality and possession are the key reasons. Now, after the reading of this book, I see that, how could it be otherwise, the issue has genetic roots.

Concern about the paternity of her children is deeply ingrained in the psyche of the male or, rather, in their genes. There would be concern about the paternity if females were always faithful, but they are not.

The risk to be cuckolded, the impulse to be unfaithful and the need to reproduce, not only have opened a Pandora's box, but a whole group of them. The costs of being a cuckold is considerable. The reproductive success of a male is reduced if he invests time and energy raising children that are not his, and wastes resources that could have been used to promote his own genes or guarantee the reproductive success elsewhere.

Recommended reading: Promiscuity by Tim Birkhead.