| Sumario: | The writers propose that circumcision exemplifies the subtlety and complexity of the linkages and causal feedback loops among humans' symbolic world, cultural world, and physical bodies. They hypothesize that circumcision reorganizes the male's sensory somato-cortex to increase the threshold of sexual excitability/distraction. In addition, they contend that this threshold shift permits the young men of a social group to be slightly more tractable in carrying out corporate activities beneficial to the community and to be slightly more restrained sexually and more cooperative in the pair bond. Furthermore, they argue that the practice is accepted because the procedure is deeply embedded in the ritual and symbolic life of the social group and is applicable to all young males. Finally, they make suggestions regarding how to test the hypothesis empirically.
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