It is historical materialism, or the idea that history is the sum of humans going around being human and interacting with other humans and the environment, and how we produce the resources and conditions that allow us to go around being human (making food, clothing, art, and the social and political systems that enable us to make these things). History is just how all of these activities and systems exert pressures on human societies that limit or shape what we think of as natural human behavior.
Technology plays a big part in this. For example, veganism could not be a part of human behaviors for Inuits 200 years ago. They did not have agriculture or access to non-animal foods and anyone who wanted to be vegan would starve. However, as the means of production have evolved, it is now possible to find vegan Inuits.
The social and political systems also play a big part. Capitalism, because it pits every property owner against each other in competition to accumulate capital before some other capitalist accumulates you, highly incentivizes greedy and selfish behavior. It’s not that greed only exists in capitalism, it is that capitalism makes greed more advantageous. So in a different socio-economic system, greed may be a much less frequent trait among humans.
It is historical materialism, or the idea that history is the sum of humans going around being human and interacting with other humans and the environment, and how we produce the resources and conditions that allow us to go around being human (making food, clothing, art, and the social and political systems that enable us to make these things). History is just how all of these activities and systems exert pressures on human societies that limit or shape what we think of as natural human behavior.
Technology plays a big part in this. For example, veganism could not be a part of human behaviors for Inuits 200 years ago. They did not have agriculture or access to non-animal foods and anyone who wanted to be vegan would starve. However, as the means of production have evolved, it is now possible to find vegan Inuits.
The social and political systems also play a big part. Capitalism, because it pits every property owner against each other in competition to accumulate capital before some other capitalist accumulates you, highly incentivizes greedy and selfish behavior. It’s not that greed only exists in capitalism, it is that capitalism makes greed more advantageous. So in a different socio-economic system, greed may be a much less frequent trait among humans.