The dissemination of divination in roman republican times

ontogenetic histories. Some feelings, like drives, are properties of the so-called reptilian brain
and are shared with reptiles (Buck 1999: 306). This is not so for the social emotions. They in
turn seem to be functionally integrated in the orbitofrontal cortex, which is an evolutionarily
unique human part of the brain (Rolls 2000: 186f). The higher emotions also depend to a
greater degree on an epigenetic process involving social and environmental factors (Buck
1999: 325). This means that the higher emotions are more susceptible to cultural influence
(Buck 1999: 327; Damasio 2003: 45).
It is also the case that the higher the emotions are the better they are accessed by
consciousness and language. This means that the simple emotions imply more unconscious
automatic reactions, whereas the higher emotions allow conscious “explicit (verbalizable)
decisions involving multi step syntactic planning to be implemented” (Rolls 2000: 180).
Consciousness and language add another dimension since they liberate the organism from the
immediate present and allows for evaluation and planning for the future (Carruthers 2002). It
is possible through individual and interpersonal communication to create mental models of
the world and attach emotional valence to the different elements (Damasio 1998: 86;
Damasio 2003: 54; Edelman 1992: 135). Since the higher emotions are dependent on learning
from others, they will also be variable from population to population. Thus, cultural
differences have an influence on the calibration of emotions in relation to environmental
facts. This is what Damasio calls emotionally competent stimuli. The emotion may be
universal, but the stimuli that trigger it may vary for the higher emotions. Let us take an
example: all people get hungry and all people feel disgust. Hunger is a drive and disgust is a
primary emotion. Disgust is therefore a higher emotion. Cultural differences, or technically
different epigenetic histories, between a hypothetical Dane, let’s call him Hans-Christian, and
an equally hypothetical Turk, Aisha, determine that the former thinks that pork chops are
tasty and the latter that they are disgusting. Conversely the latter may find sheep brain
delicious and the former that it is disgusting. The feeling of disgust is more malleable than is
hunger. It does not matter how often you have learned as a child to be hungry in the morning
is good so that you can eat a healthy breakfast, if you simply are not very hungry in the
morning.
Overall emotions are assigned an emotional valence on a continuum of approach or
aversion. Specific emotions such as disgust, fear, joy, shame, sympathy and pride can be
attached to different objects or situations. But although there is a greater flexibility it should
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