The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal

The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal
Desmond Morris | 1999-04-13 00:00:00 | Delta | 256 | Social Sciences
"A startling view of man, stripped of the facade we try so hard to hide behind."  In view of man's awesome creativity and resourcefulness, we may be inclined to regard him as descended from the angels, yet, in his brilliant study, Desmond Morris reminds us that man is relative to the apes--is in fact, the greatest primate of all.  With knowledge gleaned from primate ethnology, zoologist Morris examines sex, child-rearing, exploratory habits, fighting, feeding, and much more to establish our surprising bonds to the animal kingdom and add substance to the discussion that has provoked controversy and debate the world over. Natural History Magazine praised The Naked Ape as "stimulating . . . thought-provoking . . . [Morris] has introduced some novel and challenging ideas and speculations." "He minces no words," said Harper's.  "He lets off nothing in our basic relation to the animal kingdom to which we belong. . . He is always specific, startling, but logical."
Reviews
Desmond Morris is one of my scientific heroes and I have a huge brain crush on him. I think he's brilliant, a master of his field. My background is in wildlife biology and I've long been fascinated with human behavior from a more detached perspective than psychology or sociology. He was the first person I encountered that had the same fascination with humans from a zoological perspective. Anyone who feels superior to animals or chooses to deny the fact that we are animals should be made to read this book.



My only quibble with the book is that it is somewhat dated, though truly it doesn't much affect most of the information given. However, his view of homosexuality is obviously a product of the times (1960's) and was the only point in the entire book with which I did not agree. There have been a wealth of studies into the phenomenon of homosexuality throughout the animal kingdom since this book was published, so I personally would love to see a more modern revision with information gleaned since the 60's.



Other than that, this book was extremely fascinating and informative. I can't begin to cover all of the information, but if you think you might be interested, definitely get this book! Desmond Morris' works in general are very interesting, accessible to non-scientists, easy to read, and quite full of information.
Reviews
Having read The Naked Ape when I was a teenager was like someone remove cataracts from my eyes.

No longer was I to be fooled by pretentious "leaders" and manipulative

fools. Power and position are transparent.

Desmond Morris gave me a benchmark which, from that time forward, I was able to

measure my relationships with my fellow human beings.

This book was, indeed, a joy to read. I laughed on reading almost every page

as the people he described were exactly like those I had observed in my short life.

Recognizing posturing for what it is does not make me popular but instead makes

me powerful in the face of those who's pretenses are so transparent.

This knowledge changed me from a sheep into a lion.

Try this when you go to court: Imagine that the enemy you face is simply a monkey with a suit on pretending to be something his/she is not. Your answers will be solid

replies to accusations and you will never tremble at "being served" again.



Oh, by the way, you Creationists have been fooled by Elmer Gantry types for

centuries. You want the truth then Darwin is closer to the truth than that

Minister who gets paid for selling you stupidity on a weekly basis. There is

a God but that fool is not going to show you something he knows nothing about.
Reviews
an all time favorite.

bite through the illusion.

will take courage.

bring jesus to help you. right?



follow with an osho chaser.
Reviews
Reading The Naked Ape you can understand why humans have such physical structure and the purpose why it was designed that way.

Knowing where we come from allow us to know why we are mammals and how we are affected by such fact.
Reviews
It's been a while since I read this work during college, but I came across it while going through some boxes and gave it a new going over. Set aside the serious philosophical and epistemological problems encountered when one presupposes to be only an "animal" and then proceeds to provide an objective analysis of said "animal," the book is grossly outdated and with the advantage of hind-sight, wholly simplistic.



Philosophically, the book suffers from assuming the correctness of its conclusion as its major premise -- it begs the question. If you're looking to find reinforcement for your already held belief, this book may make you feel snug and self-justified. That is the extent of its utility.



In the words of renowned paleoanthropologist Joseph Weiner: "It is quite obvious that modern man could not have arisen from any ape, let alone monkey, at all similar to those of today...it is ridiculous to describe man as a 'naked' or any other kind of ape." (Joseph S. Weiner, *The Natural History of Man*. New York: Universe Books), p. 33.

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