just-so story

Definitions

1. A story which supposedly explains the beginning or early development of a current state of affairs; a myth, a pourquoi story.
2. A story, especially one for children, featuring animals as characters.
3. An untestable explanation for something, such as a form of behaviour, a biological trait, or a cultural practice.
   derogatory, especially

Equivalents

Examples

“Sociobiological explanations of human behaviour encounter two special difficulties, suggesting that a Darwinian model⟳ may be generally inapplicable in this case. […] Secondly, the standard foundation of Darwinian just-so stories does not apply⟳ to humans. That foundation is the implication: if adaptive, then genetic—for the inference of adaptation is usually the only basis of a selective story, and Darwinism is a theory of genetic change⟳ and variation in populations.”

CEFR level