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A review by tanja_alina_berg
The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal by Desmond Morris
4.0
When I stumbled across this book last week and promptly down-loaded it to my kindle, I did not realize it had been first published in 1967. Some of the views are decidedly antiquated. For example that men go to work in attempt to satisfy the hunting urge together with other men, while women stay at home and take care of the children. In most of the Scandinavian countries, as large a percentage of women as men are now an active part of the work force. The superficial treatment of homosexuality and religion isn't anywhere near satisfying either. However, when this book was written, homosexuality was still considered a disease, so I presume this book calling this "aberrant" is the least that can be expected.
The theories presented here on why we are naked are exactly the same as I read in a newer publication I read recently: we lost our hair due to parasites (because less hair meant less parasites) or because we were semi-acquatic for a time being. This book draws no final conclusion on this subject.
One of the points I liked best in this book was this "When you put a name on a door, or hang a painting on a wall, you are, in dog or wolf terms, for example, simply cocking your leg on them and leaving your personal mark there". A few years ago I was feeling insecure at work and I promptly put a painting on the wall and pictures on my desk - very consciously marking my territory. Come to think of it, this is the only office I have ever felt the need to "own" in this way.
Despite being somewhat old-fashioned I enjoyed this approach to the human animal. It's not completely outdated yet and well worth reading.
Another point that made me think was this "Those members of a community who are either very successfull or socially well adjusted rarely suffer from 'grooming invitation ailments'". By this the author means minor illnesses that only just require a visit to the doctor and the care of a spouse or friends (colds, laryngitis and such). In my current work where everyone has a rather high socio-economic status, we are all startingly healthy. Before, when I held a job at the bottom-end of the hierarchy, people where ill of little things ALL the time. So maybe there is some truth in the author's statement, however controversial it may be.
The theories presented here on why we are naked are exactly the same as I read in a newer publication I read recently: we lost our hair due to parasites (because less hair meant less parasites) or because we were semi-acquatic for a time being. This book draws no final conclusion on this subject.
One of the points I liked best in this book was this "When you put a name on a door, or hang a painting on a wall, you are, in dog or wolf terms, for example, simply cocking your leg on them and leaving your personal mark there". A few years ago I was feeling insecure at work and I promptly put a painting on the wall and pictures on my desk - very consciously marking my territory. Come to think of it, this is the only office I have ever felt the need to "own" in this way.
Despite being somewhat old-fashioned I enjoyed this approach to the human animal. It's not completely outdated yet and well worth reading.
Another point that made me think was this "Those members of a community who are either very successfull or socially well adjusted rarely suffer from 'grooming invitation ailments'". By this the author means minor illnesses that only just require a visit to the doctor and the care of a spouse or friends (colds, laryngitis and such). In my current work where everyone has a rather high socio-economic status, we are all startingly healthy. Before, when I held a job at the bottom-end of the hierarchy, people where ill of little things ALL the time. So maybe there is some truth in the author's statement, however controversial it may be.