Rating: 
Summary: A classic in sociobiology
Review: Desmond Morris is that rarity, a scientist who can speak plainly to the layman, without jargon, and impart an understanding of science clearly. Being human, he of course also makes assumptions that later discoveries cast into doubt. So it is with this book. Morris, in his career, has studied many species, including rabbits, birds, turtles, fish--and primates (he was curator of mammals at the London Zoo); particularly human beings, whom he sees as the greatest of the primates. Of course virtually all humans would agree with that. Much of this book would seem to reflect undeniable fact, for those of us who accept the apparent gradual changes of organisms over thousands of generations in their attempt to survive in a changing environment--a case usually termed "evolution." For those who deny evolutionary "theory" in favor of creationism, this will be a boring book, and a waste of time. One particular facet of Morris's view of human evolution both disturbed me and led me to further investigation: his mention of the theory that pre-hominids had passed through a re-entry phase which brought about dramatic physical changes in our species that made us unique among other primates, our cousins, who shared our last common apelike ancestor. Specifically, the theory, the Aquatic Ape Theory (AAT) as it is known, he only briefly mentioned and seemed content with the view that our earliest ancestor, faced with a receding arboreal African environment which became insufficient to support all of the primates and thus forced them out, dropped from the trees and hit the African savannah running bipedally, and changed their diet to include meat, shedding their fur as they ran to cool off. Problem: The fastest animals on earth are quadrupeds, and are covered with fur. Also humans have a subcutaneous fat layer that provides warmth (and flotation.) Eventually, I found Elaine Morgan's books (The Aquatic Ape Hypothesis, and Scars of Evolution,) which I found much more persuasive than the Savannah Theory which he espoused. Nevertheless, Desmond Morris and Robert Ardrey (The Social Contract, and African Genesis,) have made huge contributions and should be read by anyone with an interest in this subject. Joseph H. Pierre
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Summary: a must read
Review: A great book for anyone with an open mind. Very thought prokoving and interesting. A must read.
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Summary: fantastic
Review: A rather humbling and fascinating representation of that most complex animal: man. A must-read for any person interested in any bio-related field!
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Summary: An entertaining and thorough look at the human species
Review: As a 12-year-old, I confess I learned about sex (not just pregnancy and menstruation) from this book. Desmond Morris spares no details on this matter, Chapter 2, as I recall. His later books have more pictures (the coffee-table "Manwatching" for example), but always he shares his insights and ideas with a certain twinkle in his eye. You feel like this is an exclusive club you belong to, which of course the human race is.
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Summary: A Turning point
Review: As a paradigm of the human race it depicts our most unique characteristics, lowest instincts and highest aspirations in a unique way. It strips man and civilization of it's alledged superiority making all the work of mankind and its subtulties a simple consequence of evolution. It isn't a simplistic job, and it doesn't take a reductionist approach, but rather takes every aspect of the human conditiona dn behavior and explains it as a consequence of our unique condition of carnivore monkeys, so to speak. I would consider this book a must read.
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Summary: A must read for any homo sapien
Review: Desmond Morris explains what we have been taught to deny ourselves for centuries, that we are merely homo sapien sapiens. He does not deny that we have evolved beyond all our counterparts here on the earth; however he does reinforce that we are now more than products of the earth. We have become products not only of our biology, but also of our growing self awareness. I tend to think that Morris is stating that we are cognitively denying our roots simply because we cannot succumb to them. Our own arrogance is separating us from that which we are, leading to our betrayal of our humanness. Desmond Morris seems to understand that we must know where we are coming from in order to understand where we are going. Without this understanding we may be headed for eventual disaster.
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Summary: (R)evolutionary text that connects theory with fact
Review: Desmond Morris is one of the most acute thinkers to come out the field of biology (more specifically zoology) in the last 50 years. THE NAKED APE is a text that forces the reader to confront his or her own animalistic origins. Beginning with, literally, origins, the reader is lead through the interconnectedness of humanity's mammalian heritage in relation to sex, (child) rearing, mental and physical exploration, fighting, feeding, and comfort. Morris makes it evident that humanity is the product of evolution and posts fluorescent signposts along the way in the form of irrefutable evidence by connecting theory with fact. Whether Dr. Morris is outlining how humans have replaced their innate tendency to groom with the familiar greeting smile or that the pair bond replaces the parental void after sexual maturation, the author breeches all areas of thought along the way: linguistics, psychoanalysis, as well as evolution and semiotics. This is a dense text that is free of cumbersome jargon that anyone with an interest in sociology, philosophy, biology, psychology, or linguistics will come away without regret.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: Desmond Morris wrote "The Naked Ape" in the late 1960's, and it is a classic which established the field of evolutionary anthropology. His ideas were revolutionary at the time, and he clearly says so. If there is a fault in the book, it is that he covers too much ground too quickly. I think his purpose at the time, however, was simply to condition the reader to thinking of people as an animal that has been subject to the forces of biological evolution on the Savannah for 98 percent of our evolution. Our species only formed farming communities 10,000 years ago.
Much of Morris's conjecture has been turned into solid research in more recent years. For example, studies have found that males are sexually attracted to females having a waist/hips ratio of 0.7. This is universal among contemporary societies including primitive societies. When shown diagrams of women having different waist/hips ratios, male members of the primitive societies chose the 0.7 ratio and specifically indicated child bearing ability being linked to it. Females universally are attracted to males having a waist/hip ratio of 0.85. The argument between nurturing versus evolution is likely to continue. This book started the argument. It is certainly a serious argument. Some readers may prefer not to think as humans as being animals. Some readers, particulary those interested in newer cultural trends such as feminism, may find certain of Morris's arguments objectionable. The material is oriented towards understanding how biological evolution of Homo Sapiens has affected their social behavior. It is not directly related to how to get along with your lover or spouse. However, the book was as thought provoking today as when it was written. It is an excellent introduction to the field of evolutionary anthropology.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: Desmond Morris wrote "The Naked Ape" in the late 1960's, and it is a classic which established the field of evolutionary anthropology. His ideas were revolutionary at the time, and he clearly says so. If there is a fault in the book, it is that he covers too much ground too quickly. I think his purpose at the time, however, was simply to condition the reader to thinking of people as an animal that has been subject to the forces of biological evolution on the Savannah for 98 percent of our evolution. Our species only formed farming communities 10,000 years ago. Much of Morris's conjecture has been turned into solid research in more recent years. For example, studies have found that males are sexually attracted to females having a waist/hips ratio of 0.7. This is universal among contemporary societies including primitive societies. When shown diagrams of women having different waist/hips ratios, male members of the primitive societies chose the 0.7 ratio and specifically indicated child bearing ability being linked to it. Females universally are attracted to males having a waist/hip ratio of 0.85. The argument between nurturing versus evolution is likely to continue. This book started the argument. It is certainly a serious argument. Some readers may prefer not to think as humans as being animals. Some readers, particulary those interested in newer cultural trends such as feminism, may find certain of Morris's arguments objectionable. The material is oriented towards understanding how biological evolution of Homo Sapiens has affected their social behavior. It is not directly related to how to get along with your lover or spouse. However, the book was as thought provoking today as when it was written. It is an excellent introduction to the field of evolutionary anthropology.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: Desmond Morris, currently seventy-six, has accomplished many things throughout his life, but The Naked Ape has to be one of his best works. In The Naked Ape, Desmond Morris takes a look at Homo sapiens thru a zoologists view. He talks about how we started, what lead us to be the way we are, our tendencies, and how things really haven't changed that much. This book was very interesting for me, and gives us a different view on our fellow man.
Though the book is filled with facts, it feels as if Morris is having a conversation with you. The book is quite easy to understand and does not drag on and on. Though he does refer to us as animals, he also describes us as marvelous.
I truly enjoyed how this book changes its view on humans to the third person. It is like standing in front of a mirror and not looking at yourself they way you normally do, but as is another stood before you.
There are eight sections in the book: Origins, Sex, Rearing, Exploration, Fighting, Feeding, Comfort, and Animals. I could not help but notice that Sex was the longest section; that is saying something about our peoples.
In the first section, Morris talks about how we became bipedal, lost our fur, and are so social. When he talked of how we went thru a shift from being traveling primates to bipedal carnivores, I felt somewhat empowered. There where also a few explanations to how we lost our fur, including a parasite problem, overheating, and first going thru an aquatic stage before going bipedal. I found the aquatic theory to be quite convincing.
The rest of the book following the first section discusses our tendencies. It is hard to notice that things we do everyday, from smiling to how we eat. How most mothers hold child with the child's head to the left of their chest. How we move in a heart beat motion when anxious, or the source of our aggression. Morris points out some of the reasons we do the things we do, and why it is part of our being. I also thought that how humans can be curious at older ages while most animals simply live with what they know after reaching adult hood. It amazes me how so much of what the book says is true.
This book also shows how humans are very animal like. The male is looked at as the one to provide and control, and how woman is to be caring and motherly. It goes deeper than that; take a moment and notice the things you do and what others are doing and compare it to pre-historic man and nature today.
The Naked Ape, simply put, is an amazing book. I will not soon forget what I have learned from this book and the ideas it presents. This book's interesting perspective will also give us something to think about.
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