Love is more popular among poets but don’t underestimate disgust

After yin and yang, it is time to take a closer look at loveology versus disgustology. Could these be the new avatars of the contradictory, yet complementary, forces that guide our impulses and choices? Admittedly, the overweening relative value of neither has not yet been established as fact — over other feelings such as anger and fear — but the ascendance of this new alternative pair appears inevitable as Kolkata’s Presidency University has idealistically introduced a course on love though many behavioural scientists are veering round to what is called the “parasite avoidance theory” that avers that disgust is what has prompted human beings down the ages to prosper by adopting healthy practices and avoiding dangerous elements.

Indeed, if disgust, more than any other factor, determines our choices, the West Bengal government could make a key contribution to science by gently nudging Presidency — and other universities — to focus on this potentially disruptive emotion as well, rather than only love. Apart from influencing food, fashion, social and lifestyle choices, disgust has become a powerful factor in voting too. It is time, perhaps, for political parties and shaky governments around the world to get disgustologists on board, if only to help identify potential yuck factors and devise remedies.