Summary
We need to believe in true love, because such a belief encourages us to bond with our partner long enough to bring up our needy children (far more needy than other animals). This want is so strong that huge chunks of our culture are built around encouraging that belief. The boy-gets-girl happy ending is so popular because our primal belief system pushes us to hunt for information (even fictional information – hence the popularity of romantic fiction) that supports the existence of true love. Sadly, in the real world there is very little evidence that true love exists.
Process
Underlying axioms and provisional beliefs:
- Evolutionary Psychology
- Evolutionary psychology underpins the concept of primal beliefs