The biblical fall mirrors the evolution of self-aware mortality knowledge.
Evidence
From a scientific standpoint, the development of the human neocortex spawned symbolic thought, self-awareness, the capacity to reflect on the past and anticipate the future, and the knowledge of our mortality. In this way, the “fall of man,” the allegorical foundation of Western religion, converges with contemporary science: with increasing knowledge came the awareness of death—and that changed everything. — Sheldon Solomon, Jeff Greenberg, Tom Pyszczynski, The Worm at the Core, 772
Categorization
- XREF: Echoes the Eden/narrative motifs in Parable of the Sower and the knowledge-of-death theme threading the whole book.