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Isolation and Individualism
Right up there with food, water, and shelter is our need for human connection. It's the foundation of happiness and the source of meaning and purpose in life—yet we've never been more alone.
Psychological studies point to everything from withering immune systems to madness or death as the fate of those bereft of human touch and nurturing. Our need to belong and connect is rooted in survival. After all, we are born naked and helpless. A caveman who wasn't part of a community didn't last long—and even if he did, his genes wouldn't. He couldn't possibly have fought off wild animals, enemies, and the elements; procured food; and still had time for wooing and procreation without belonging to a group. So anyone alive today ...
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