https://tube-langues-vivantes.apps.education.fr/videos/watch/57437deb-4895-48e3-9efb-44fc8726f6a1 Dance seems to be the ultimate frivolity. How did it become a human necessity? Watch 'Dance, Dance Evolution' on Aeon: https://aeon.co/videos/dance-seems-to-be-the-ultimate-frivolity-how-did-it-become-a-human-necessity Watch more free videos on Aeon: https://aeon.co/videos Subscribe to the Aeon Video newsletter: https://aeon.us5.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=89c6e02ebaf75bbc918731474&id=7157ce880b Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aeonmag/ Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aeonmag Follow us on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/aeon.co Every culture dances. Moving our bodies to music is ubiquitous throughout human history and across the globe. So why is this ostensibly frivolous act so fundamental to being human? The answer, it seems, is in our need for social cohesion – that vital glue that keeps societies from breaking apart despite interpersonal differences. The French sociologist Émile Durkheim (1858-1917) theorised that ‘collective effervescence’ – moments in which people come together in some form of unifying, excitement-inducing activity – is at the root of what holds groups together. More recently, Bronwyn Tarr, an evolutionary biologist and psychologist at the University of Oxford who is also a dancer, has researched the evolutionary and neurological underpinnings of our innate tendency to bust a move. Drawing on the work of both Durkheim and Tarr, this Aeon Original video explores that unifying feeling of group ‘electricity’ that lifts us up when we’re enthralled by our favourite sports teams, participating in religious rituals, entranced by music – and, yes, dancing the night away. Directors and Animators: Rosanna Wan, Andrew Khosravani Producer: Kellen Quinn Writer: Sam Dresser Associate producer: Adam D’Arpino Sound designers: Eli Cohn, Ben Chesneau, Maya Peart Narrator: Simon Mattacks #dance #animation #sociology Sat, 13 Jun 2026 18:27:19 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://tube-langues-vivantes.apps.education.fr https://tube-langues-vivantes.apps.education.fr/client/assets/images/icons/icon-1500x1500.png https://tube-langues-vivantes.apps.education.fr/videos/watch/57437deb-4895-48e3-9efb-44fc8726f6a1 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://tube-langues-vivantes.apps.education.fr/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.