Matt Ridley
Paperback | Pages: 405 pages Rating: 4.04 | 14489 Users | 571 Reviews
Details Epithetical Books The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature
| Title | : | The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature |
| Author | : | Matt Ridley |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 405 pages |
| Published | : | April 29th 2003 by Harper Perennial (HarperCollins) (first published October 1993) |
| Categories | : | Nonfiction. Science. Biology. Psychology. Evolution. Sexuality |
Relation Supposing Books The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature
Referring to Lewis Carroll's Red Queen from Through the Looking-Glass, a character who has to keep running to stay in the same place, Matt Ridley demonstrates why sex is humanity's best strategy for outwitting its constantly mutating internal predators. The Red Queen answers dozens of other riddles of human nature and culture -- including why men propose marriage, the method behind our maddening notions of beauty, and the disquieting fact that a woman is more likely to conceive a child by an adulterous lover than by her husband. Brilliantly written, The Red Queen offers an extraordinary new way of interpreting the human condition and how it has evolved.Particularize Books During The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature
| Original Title: | The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature |
| ISBN: | 0060556579 (ISBN13: 9780060556570) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Rating Epithetical Books The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature
Ratings: 4.04 From 14489 Users | 571 ReviewsWeigh Up Epithetical Books The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature
I might have rated this more highly if I hadn't just come off a spate of reading very similar and slightly better works that incorporate much of its content in pithier form (Daniel Dennett's Darwin's Dangerous Idea and Steven Pinker's How the Mind Works, though those were both written afterwards), yet its central metaphor of sexual selection as arms race is compelling enough that I finished it alongside the superior Dennett and Pinker books anyway. The "red queen" of the title is derived fromSince this is a science book it is troubling that this doesn't follow the scientific method. Frequently topics are not developed logically leading to confusing and odd sentences. Some interesting propositions -- read for a lark.
This is Evo Psych masquerading as hard science. It is sometimes dense and technical, sometimes defensive and condescending. There is some well-researched science, some reasonable observations, and some logical conclusions, but they are so inextricably tangled with sweeping generalizations, correlations misinterpreted as causations, and ambiguous data presented as certainty as to render the whole mess too annoying to read. I gave up with about 70 pages to go. Life is too short, and surely there
Since this is a science book it is troubling that this doesn't follow the scientific method. Frequently topics are not developed logically leading to confusing and odd sentences. Some interesting propositions -- read for a lark.
I enjoyed this book and recommend it highly. Some may see it as a cynical view of human nature, however I found it to be an engaging and convincing one. My favorite quote from this book sums up the totality of the text for me: "...the choosiness in human beings in picking their mates has driven the human mind into a frenzied expansion for no reason except that wit, virtuosity,inventiveness, and individuality turn people on. It is a somewhat less uplifting perspective on the purpose of humanity
How much more generous it would be if, instead of writing parables about childhood wounds, psychologists were to accept that some differences between the sexes just are, that they are in the nature of the beasts, because each sex has an evolved tendency to develop that way in response to experience. The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature is a very accessible book. It is easy to read, follow and understand. After reading this book, you will never look the same at a cheating spouse,
This was an interesting exploration of the reasons for sexual reproduction in many organisms, as well as then discussing the science with relation to human sexuality and sociology. Ridley makes good thorough use of a broad range of research findings in the area, discussing these with (mainly) even-handedness and a breadth of illustrative examples. The central theme relates to the importance of sexual reproduction in protection from disease and in best perpetuating our genes. It's an educational
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