A group of psychologists argued that we need to revise Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. They propose we should delete “self-actualization” from the pinnacle and replace it with “parenting.” Right below this peak, they added “mate retention” and “mate acquisition.” They claim that too many people see Maslow’s triangle as “aspirational” – a description of what fulfilled individuals “should” do – rather than as an explanation of how human motivation actually works. Their perspective is evolutionary; if the only purpose of art, music, and literature is self-fulfillment, now does that contribute to the survival of the species? One of the proponents of this view observes, “If you are a good poet or a good musician, there is a reproductive payoff; women are attracted to men with these abilities. What a man is saying when he is playing his guitar up there is ‘look at my good genes.’” What do you think – do our motivations to buy, have, and be ultimately come down to survival of our gene pool?