creative-2
Explanation
This comic explores the paradox of human creativity through an alien's analysis. An alien asks why humans produce so much art, culture, and science, and is told it comes from "constant sexual availability" -- that is, because humans can mate year-round (unlike many animals that have defined mating seasons), they have evolved to be perpetually anxious about their social and sexual status. This anxiety drives them to create art, pursue science, and build culture at all hours.
The alien concludes that humans have been "evolved to perpetually market" themselves to potential mates, which is why they can produce creative work at any time of day regardless of season. An onlooker objects: "That's reductionist! I make art for personal expression!" The alien's devastating reply is: "Suppose you could rename it for sex." The person pauses and asks, "...where is this exchange going?"
The comic satirizes evolutionary psychology explanations of art and creativity. It takes the reductionist view that all human creative output is ultimately driven by sexual selection (a real hypothesis in evolutionary psychology, associated with Geoffrey Miller's "The Mating Mind") and pushes it to a comedically uncomfortable conclusion. The humor lies in how quickly the "I make art for personal expression" defense crumbles when the sexual incentive is reintroduced.