Rating: 
Summary: An excellent start
Review: Possibly one of the greatest things to come from reading any book, is that your entire perception of something, a paradigm you may have, is completely and entirely set on end. Unfortunately, even for the most avid of readers, this is a very rare, however the day I completed Morris' unprecedented work I never viewed my world in the same way again. This is by no means an exaggeration. Morris breaks human beings down so effectively, so methodically that it is nearly impossible not to agree with him that indeed, stripped of our veneer of civilization, the inner workings of a naked ape are all one is left with. Not to say Morris doesn't get a few things wrong along the way. I am in full accord with modern day evolutionary psychologists (or sociobiologists, or whatever the hell they decide to call themselves) who fault Morris for his pair bond theory, amongst other things, which indeed does stand on very weak ground. I can't see how one gender would ever develop a trait that in the end would only be beneficial to the other gender, as would have had to have happen for this theory to work. Fortunately, though, I tend to see this as a mere chink in the elaborate chains of thought Morris constructs, unlike his detractors who claim it undermines his entire book. This is stupid. Morris was writing back in time when evolutionary psychology was in the zygote stage, completely unknown to anyone beside a handful of scientists. Morris sets forth in his book powerful and logical evidence and explanations that support the clearest model out there with which to view our species. His critics point out that his book failed to create a renaissance in academia, but so what? When has the academic world ever been quick to change its precious models, especially ones that focus on ourselves? Even today, years after not only Morris, but the even more persuasive work of Trivers, Williams, Wilson, Symons et al has been given, academia still has yet to truly embrace the sociobiology paradigm, despite the mountain of evidence and obvious intelligence of the theory. This is indeed a true sin, because it is a beautiful theory, one that not only helps us truly understand ourselves and our relations to each other, but to the world around us, placing us firmly within the grip of Nature, yet able to take our own course just the same.
Rating:
Summary: The Naked Ape - An Anvil of Reality
Review: The Naked Ape (if you read it) clearly shows the beauty and brilliance of our fundamental nature, a nature still iron-locked to our basic, animal ancestry. The Naked Ape proves that there is no immediate escape from the stronghold our ancient mode of behaviour still plays on us, regardless of our newfound "human intelligence". After first reading The Naked Ape (at age 25) my judgement on life simplified. Each chapter lifted burdens of heavy confusion and sadness off my shoulders. I read the book five times. Even now, at 37, I go back to it when I'm feeling angry or betrayed or confused. I'm familiar with every paragraph; I absorbing each page almost at once. And with every reading, the truth of The Naked Ape strengthens and clarifies my life. At the end of the book, Desmond Morris's final message tops anything ever written about the solution to our current, misconstrued "advanced" lifestyle. I won't spoil it and quote him. You'll need to read the book and find out for yourself (or get the book and read the final chapter if you're into short-cuts). But do yourself a gigantic good turn and start fresh from the beginning.
Rating:
Summary: Classic that changed how we think about man
Review: The Naked Ape is Desmond Morris' controversial best-selling book that studies human beings not as exalted creationary exceptions, but rather as creatures very much beholden to our evolutionary primate origins. Morris, a brilliant zoologist with expertise in the field of primates (amongst other things), uses his profound academic and professional knowledge about primates to shed light on the human experience. Backed with an enormous quantity of scientific evidence, Morris explains the what, why and how of human behavior by stripping away man's "civilized veneer" and examining the animalistic and evolutionary origins of our behavior. Morris walks us through the evidence in a logical and interconnected fashion. His chapters are organized thematically and begin with the "basics" of human behavior (sex, child rearing) and then move through the more complex and higher order behaviors (fighting, communication). Throughout these chapters, Morris uses a wide breadth of biological, psychological, sociological and zoological evidence to demonstrate the connection between man and our animal cousins. Though an academic, Morris writes in a simple and direct manner that is accessible to all. The book is jargon-free and has no footnotes, though Morris does provide helpful lists of related readings at the end the book. This book was first published in 1967 and its no-nonsense view of humanity's animalistic origins caused quite a stir. Even though more than 30 years have passed since its publication, this book remains thought-provoking and enlightening throughout. Due to the book's age, several of Morris' theories have been updated and refined over the years. Therefore, this book should not be read as an infallible account of our current understanding of man. Rather, this is an invaluable introductory work on evolutionary sociology/anthropology. More recent works are likely to provide more accurate and up-to-date perspectives. People who are uncomfortable with the idea of evolution or with humanity's connection to other animals should probably not read this book (they probably don't want to anyway). Most will find this a worthwhile read that challenges conventional thought about the human species and provides important insights into our origins.
Rating:
Summary: The Naked Truth
Review: There are certain people who just get an enormous kick out of telling the truth; especially when it involves disclosing something that other people don't particularly wish to hear. Desmond Morris fits into this category. The idea that we are just a few, tiny DNA notches above our ape cousins, can't be particularly welcome to most people, especially to the "Brain Luddites" of Christian fundamentalism, but nevertheless it is the truth, and, in this book, Morris seems to take great pleasure in letting us know this. He writes in a clear, lucid style that avoids unnecessary jargon and gives the attentive reader plenty of time to keep up with the flow of his ideas. One way he does this is to organize the book into 'organic' chapters, focusing on different aspects of human behavior, such as "Sex", "Fighting", "Feeding", etc. Another way is to constantly compare specific human behavior with that of other animals. Of course some questions remain about the exact evolution of our species, our degree of adaptability, and the complex way our primitive natures tug against our modern conditioning, but so much is revealed or clarified by this book that you won't have time to notice any omissions. Along with Fraser's Golden Bough this is one of the key texts on which to base a clear understanding of human nature and society.
Rating:
Summary: Something for everyone
Review: There isn't much more to say other than this is an amazing book, but I'll try. It includes comparisons of human and non-human animals in the realms of sex, child-rearing, fighting, hunting, and day-to-day living. Not one of the 250 or so pages was uninteresting. It's a very quick read and you'll find yourself reading it again and again. This book is a must for any biology major or anyone interesting in learning about our origins. I would definitely suggest checking it out.
Rating: 
Summary: the naked ape
Review: This book can rightfully be called a classic. It represents an early account of the ways in which an evolutionary perspective can illuminate human behavior. It confronts a wide range of subjects, from the signaling value of postures to the role of infant crying. The use of a carnivore model to interpret the evolution of the human family is admirable, in its attempt to link such a phenomenon with knowledge of other animals, if misleading. All this said, however, The Naked Ape should be read cautiously by anyone seeking a current understanding of similar subject matter. For example, Morris' claim that human behavior should best be understood in complex nations such as Britain (p. 51:"The only solution is to take average results from large samples of the most successful societies. The small, backward, and unsuccessful societies can largely be ignored.") represents an assumption since turned on its head by evolutionary psychologists. Read alone, this book will generate interest but too-often misinform; read in combination with more recent work (e.g. Pinker's How The Mind Works) this book can be seen as most valuable.
Rating:
Summary: Fallen Angel or Risen Ape?
Review: This book is phenomenally informative. It is organized into eight long chapters, so the good stuff keeps coming fast and furious, making the book hard to put down. The Naked Ape will teach you everything you've ever wanted to know about yourself, your fellow man, and society at large. Morris deals briefly with the concept of religion, describing it as a manifestation of our need to fulfill our inbred biological primate urges. But his main intent is to describe humans in zoological terms as just another species, albeit a tremendously successful one. He jokingly compares our journey to the top of the food chain as a rags-to-riches story, and like all nouveaux riche, we are very sensitive about our background. I wholeheartedly declare this book a must read, although it might be a bit unsettling to those who prefer not to think of humans as mere animals. Even still, it is definitely worth reading. It seems Morris, writing just a few years after the Cuban Missile Crisis, was not optimistic about humanity's long-term prospects, and wished to write a book for the time capsule. Reading it on the other side of the millennium which he doubted we'd see, I'd say he succeeded.
Rating: 
Summary: The naked man
Review: This book sure provides the reader with an appealing, refreshingly bright view of the human species, without fear to face man as an intelligent animal, yet still an animal. It is utmost logical, everything stems from always astute arguments or analogies which make the exposition a charming and clever view of humankind's evolution, but this is also and partly for this reason the perfect illustration of the non-scientific, somewhat dangerous book, especially for those readers who wouldn't appreciate the difference between acknowledged facts reported in the book and speculations asserted by the author. Ascertained facts are narrated in a most fascinating and enthralling speech. For instance, the physical and emotional changes accompanying the act of making love or getting ready for fight are terrific descriptions. Most insights, with more or less experimental evidence to support them, are amazing and will really make you love the book, for their convincing and sounding universal explanations of fundamentals wonders. One will find for instance possible reasons for why our females have orgasms--something quite unique to our species--why do we need love, what are the motivations for jealousy, friendship, courtship, mating in humankind, etc. But too often does Morris attempt to conceal his scientifically-free allegations along with accepted ones. Then come the clearly out-of-topic extrapolations, like how human beings will have to evolve in order to avoid war extermination (said to be more than liable). His description of him faking a dominated ape to avoid paying a speed-excess fine gives the book a taste of tricks cookbook to fool others, when we like to see it as a popularization essay of ethnology with extras. Thus, no question whether you should read or not this book, read it! But please be sure not to fall in the trap of blindly eating all is said, because that seems to explain (at most, that could perfectly explain, but that isn't the way science goes). Morris did such a good job of mixing science and speculation that non-specialists, me first, won't make the difference easily. Most important is to enjoy the book, and avoid fanatic response afterthat (doing the ape as Morris to take advantage upon other people seeming the more likely stupid reaction). Don't let this change your life.
Rating:
Summary: IIt'll change your vision of man
Review: This classic will definitely change the way the reader looks at the human species. Those who still find it uncomfortable to hear of man being reffered to as an animal should not read this book. Or perhaps they should. Morris has this rare -to-find ability to write for a non-acamemic readership and still be thorough in his exposition. Fascinating form page one, up the the last one.
Rating:
Summary: A true classic about the human animal.
Review: With this book I was finally able to come to grips with my primate origins. With this book I was finally able to say goodbye to the religous fairy tales that I was never able to feel comfortable with. With this book I was finally able to accept that if there is a God, that it is a God that neither I, or anyone, has ever heard of. Like it or not we are primates. This book clearly shows why and how. Live life to the fullest!
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