Customer Reviews

The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

While I would never presume - as some reviewers might - to misstate what is said in this classic volume and then presume to suggest that "now you don't need to read the book," I will say that this is an excellent edition of a classic work. All who have any interest in the history of Darwinian evolution and particularly the historical views of the evolution of man will find this fascinating reading, particularly if the context can be juxtaposed with what has been discovered since Darwin's time. Of course, times have changed, our hopefully less euro-centric views have been altered and there has been considerable progress through the generations since the original publication by Darwin, and that makes the progress of human knowledge all the more fascinating, as well as the insight Darwin obviously possessed in his day. This one's a "must-read" for anyone interested in the history of science.

It wasn't until a few years after the publication of The Origin of Species (1859) that natural selection completely overhauled biology as the unification principle widely sought after to explain uniformity and diversity in living things, Darwin had himself uncovered a type of natural selection, sexual selection, mentioned it briefly in Origin but held back on explaining it fully because it would require more work to do so. The result was the 2 volume The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex published in 1871 that spanned nearly 700 pages. Here both volumes are presented in one.

Darwin and Wallace had co-discovered natural selection as the main mechanism of evolution. Wallace however had succumbed to supernatural explanations and had largely refused to accept that sexual selection could produce some adaptations. Maybe this was because he thought that some adaptations could be explained another way but Darwin had compiled enough evidence to suggest that sexual selection was responsible for many adaptations and was also thusly more evidence for his theory of natural selection. There was only one way to do this and that was to set about documenting as much as Darwin could on sexually selective traits. It is a mammoth undertaking and is primarily the book that got the ball rolling on explaining these adaptations.

As someone who has read this book I am surprised by how it is often wrongly misrepresented by creationists as a work of unabashed racism. Out of the 700 pages I found maybe a few lines that would today require some more elaboration to make the intention clear. That is for today, nearly 140 years since it was written and only 50 years after western civilization had abandoned segregation. Darwin's work is nothing short of 140 years ahead of its time during an era that was still working to abolish slavery. Still we are always going to have some individuals who do not understand this context (maybe deliberately) so reasons are given by way of a 21st century introduction (James Moore and Adrian Desmond in my edition). There is no excuse for the detractors to be ignorant about this matter, an issue that only appears in possibly several lines out of the hundreds of thousands that are here. So let's be done with that and move on to the science.

Darwin sets out by indicating homologous structures among organisms classed as different species. During correlation he also introduces vestiges as evidence of our origins. He then turns to mental powers and instinct, especially between humans and other primates, their ability to reason and use tools and awareness. Darwin directly implies that god belief could stem from evolution as does morality. He talks about social structures, especially with insects. He analyzes indigenous peoples (called savages back then) as evidence for descent and compares developments through variations, inheritance and their causes. The important point here is that the ultimate causes are the same for all living things including humans. Darwin looks at parts that we use and do not use, gives reasons for them, treats the topic of erect walking, canine teeth, skull shape, nakedness, our tail bone, brain expansion, our ranking in the animal kingdom, the various races and their extinctions.

Darwin then turns to sexual selection as an explanation for a variety of adaptations. He looks at polygamy, variability, proportions of males to females and the question surrounding this. Turning to the animal kingdom he looks closely at colours, dimorphism, structures for holding during mating, musical instruments (stridulating), pugnacity, adaptations for sexual conflict, courting, colour protection and differences in colour between males and females and mimicry. He covers all of these with birds, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, insects and mammals.

He expands on them in advanced chapters such as on the topics of building nests, parental care, laws of battle, dancing, seasonal variations, moults, female choice, exceptions to these observations, sex-limited traits, male and female role reversals, absence of weapons in females, weapons with both sexes, vocals, odours, hair, skin colour, spots and stripes.

Now that Darwin has firmly established sexual selection he then turns to humans, the differences between the sexes, commonalities, law of battle, mental powers, voice, beauty and marriage, exaggerations, beauty standards, bodily hair, skin colour and the final conclusion that man is descended from some lower form and is self evidence of his lowly origin.

Most of the book is devoted to comparing sexual traits between varieties of organisms. There are very clear illustrations (something Origin doesn't have) every few pages. The style is very much fact upon fact upon fact. There is a huge amount of footnotes on every page with Darwin referencing everything meticulously. There are lists of birds after amphibians after mammals after fish after insects. It is a globe sprawling nature walk. We are talking hundreds of pages on observed facts. Darwin even discusses behaviour in relation to animal signalling.

His description of sexual selection among organisms vastly outweighs the actual topic of the descent of man and makes it almost seem redundant but the purpose is clear. Once Darwin has established sexual selection with other organisms and shows how the adaptations appear he then applies the same criteria to humans and abruptly we emerge from the picture of an ape-type hominid ancestor. Sexual selection makes it all too evident why we appear the way we do. Ideas that our attributes are based on a divine representation for a sanctified existence have lost. We are shaped by our desires.

How is it possible that anyone could be as ignorant as Rondeltap and give this great classic less than 5 stars? Given that it was written in the middle of the 19th Century, it more than meets the highest scientific standards of its time. Furthermore, except perhaps for Darwin's own Origin, it is arguably one of the most important works of its era. When we find that the writings of Marx, Kant and many other giants of that Century can no longer instruct us, we shall find this one still penetratingly relevant.

A beautiful, historical account of a great naturalist's work. It is important to keep in mind that the book was written 129 years ago, though, since the use of the language would not be considered "politically correct" nowadays.

Darwin was someone "who viewed life on earth in terms of an evolutionary framework grounded in science and reason" (taken from the Introduction by H. James Birx). It is difficult to believe that an educated person would misinterpret his ideas as being sexist or racist. Only the ignorant (or a creationist in disguise) would attempt to discredit the work of one of the greatest minds of all times by giving it the wrong label. Reading Daniel C. Dennett's "Darwin Dangerous Idea" (highly recommended) might help to put it in the right context.

This book takes off where "Origin of the Species" leaves off. In Origin, Darwin does not present his hypotheses on the origin of man, but in this book he states categorically that the human race is descended from earlier species of apes, which were descended from much more primitive life forms. The book is the work of a naturalist, and it is surprising how perceptive Darwin was, considering that this book was written in 1871. It faced a storm of rejection and tremendous furor. The book caused a storm of controversy throughout the entire world. Darwin sets out his facts as dispassionately as possible, but that did not stop many nations from banning the work. Darwin also clearly states in this important work that man is continuing to evolve. In this book Darwin states that the two main forms of selection that helped to shape the animals and humans the most through time are the theories of natural selection and sexual selection, and he explains the difference between these two often throughout the book. Even though the book is actually quite readable, I found it not an easy book to read. Even now these theories seem too much to be believed in some spots, but I do not argue at all with Darwin's theory. It is in fact the only way that the human race could have evolved. Definitely a must-read for anyone interested in "ground-breaking" literature.

While Darwin's theory of natural selection was accepted in the 1930s, Darwin's theory of sexual selection remains controversial. In Ernst Mayr's recent What is Evolution? Darwin's theory of sexual selection receives about two paragraphs. By comparison, Darwin considered sexual selection important enough to receive an equal number of pages as he devoted to his theory of natural selection. 130 years later, he's still probably the only evolutionary theorist to make this judgement. Equally, one must wonder that if Darwin had not come up with the idea of sexual selection, would anyone else have done so?

This book is not merely revolutionary on a theoretical basis, but also in its thoughts on animals - including humans. 100 years before Jane Goodall `discovers' chimpanzees using tools, Darwin devotes more than a page to animals using tools. More than 110 years before vets begin to give dogs prozac, Darwin argues that dogs have a sense of humour. His views on animals raises them higher than any modern theorist: his views on humans lowers them to where they are - animals, and thus the title.

130 years later, this book is still radical. It is probably the most significant alteration to our understanding of ourselves since Copernicus. Its contents, with its stark views on human violence, continues to make aetheists uneasy. The book is very readable, and Darwin's clarity, sincerity and incisiveness places him above all modern writers. Revolutionary, thoughtful, and warm, it remains more a wonder than a masterpiece.

Although there are many racist and sexist ideas, this was the climate in which Darwin wrote this book. Many of the details are grossly in error, but the book was written over 100 years ago. Many advances in knowledge have been made since then. The basic premise, and the fact that Darwin looked to the African apes as a point of origin for humans is the real beauty of the book. Darwin is many times falsely blamed for "Social Darwinism" which he never proposed nor advocated. Just because someone uses Darwin as a justification for negative ideas and or actions, does not mean that Darwin should be vilified for it. Descent was not a social commentary, but a scientific treatise, and should be treated as such.

This book opened my eyes to the role of beauty in evolution. Darwin notes that it is difficult to accept that 'mammals, birds, reptiles, and fish' share the 'high taste of beauty which generally coincides with our own standard' and that this is an important driving force in biological and social evolution. This thesis is in striking contrast to the ideas entertained in currend evolutionary psychology, where judgements about beauty are considered with respect to their function regarding survival. It contrasts also with much current evolutionary thinking as Darwin is almost entirely concerned with expaining disfunctional, rather than functional, traits in terms of evolutionary theory. The thesis is not developed in full. It is, therefore, even more stimulating to read than if the thesis had been developed conclusively.

A truly outstanding read!

I've kept The Descent of Man on my book shelf for over 30 years, unread. I was always too busy to justify the time required to do it justice. Now that I'm writing a dissertation in the History and Philosophy of Science I had the excuse I always lacked for tackling this monumental work. I'm glad I waited.

Years as a practicing biologist and teacher have taught me the value of perspective. This is not a book that will teach you the details of human evolution. Read something recent in biological anthropology if that is what you are after. If you struggle with the convoluted sentence structure and wordiness of Victorian prose, this is certainly not the book for you. Try Harry Potter or Curious George instead.

I always enjoy reading the negative reviews of books written on controversial topics just to see how many people actually review the subject matter rather than the book. I find it hysterical that 6 of the 7 negative reviews listed here were written by two fundamentalists and the seventh one was so tongue-in-cheek I'd give his review 5-starts just for fun. I found all but one of these negative reviews very predictable, and irrelevant.

The Descent needs to be read by anyone interested in what Darwin thought and dared to publically declare. It should not, however, be read outside the context of his letters, and the social milieu in which he lived. It is most certainly anchored in a different age yet bridges that age to our own. Evolution is the cornerstone of all modern biology. Darwin's astonishing synthesis and daring predictions continue to be tested, refined, and corroborated. Seeing "only in a glass darkly," he nonetheless illuminated so much that is correct in human evolutionary history. Even thoughs who critisize his quaint use of terms do so from a perspective elevated by his work. I found his writing prescient in light of the bushiness displayed in hominin fossils.

If you need a context then read Janet Browne's seminal two-volume Darwin biography. If you need adventure and a Darwinian primer, then read Voyage of the Beagle. But don't stop reading Darwin till you've read this book. The Origin is incomplete without it.

This book contains a wealth of facts, compiled during Darwin's life on matters which were highly controversial at the time. His prior book, Origin of Species, provided the scientific framework for thinking that mankind might, in some way, be a descent from the animal kingdom. For personal reasons, there was some doubt, at the time, whether it would ever be diplomatic to admit such a thing to the human beings themselves, right in their very faces. The title which Darwin placed on this book showed how easy it would be to imagine that the fundamental distinction was closely linked to the question of whom an individual might choose to have sex with, given the great parallels to a wide range of behavior in the animal kingdom. I have looked in this book for evidence that philosophy is a set of ideas adopted mainly in relation to sex, but the philosophy of the fittest for that kind of activity seems to be a bit more modern than Darwin. On a scale of stillborn to born with a brain, Darwin was definitely born with a brain, but it didn't make him crazy enough to suggest that which we may imply ourselves. There are a lot of facts in this book, compared to the number of suggestions, but it shows a considerable amount of thought.