MICHAEL:
My point.
What I heard was, is:
That when people share food.
It creates.
It builds.

CHRISTINE:
Community.

……………..

MICHAEL:
They need a meal.
It’s important to share.
Baby monkeys share their meals.
BABY MONKEYS

pg 23 + 26

In rehearsal we have talked about how Michael’s views have changed since the Anne meeting. He believes in the greater mission of the school and wants to save it. Him bringing up baby monkeys is a sign of this.

He is referencing an NPR article of which they are some:
– Apes Have Food, Will Share For A Social Payoff
Bonobos will share their food but only if it involves social interaction and will prefer social interaction with a new bonobo over someone they know. They will not share food if 0 interaction is involved.
– What’s Mine Is Yours, Sort Of: Bonobos And The Tricky Evolutionary Roots Of Sharing
Bonobos will share food but won’t share tools. If someone is reaching for a tool but can’t reach it, some chimpanzees will hand off the tool(including young ones) but Bonobos won’t.
– Why Do You Care About Fairness? Ask A Chimp
If chimps do a task and receive a reward they will become upset if another chimp who did the same task receives a smaller or less worthy reward. Sometimes the chimp that received the better reward will throw it away, other times the one with the lesser reward will kick up a fuzz.

What’s interesting about all these articles is that all authors frame “sharing” as an innately human trait that separates us from the rest of the animal kingdom. Implying that not-sharing, hoarding, not having equity is an animalistic trait. In our play, the breakdown of civility and “calm” occurs when people are no longer willing to share – ideas, food, education.