The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, Definitive Edition [Hardcover]

Charles Darwin (Author), Paul Ekman (Introduction, Afterword)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 9, 1998

Why do dogs wag their tails and cats purr? Why do we get embarrassed, and why does embarrassment make us blush? Why do we frown when we're disappointed? These any many other questions about the emotional life of humans and animals are answered in this remarkable book.
The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals was an immediate best-seller when it was first published in 1872 and still provides the point of departure for research into emotion and facial expression. In his study of infants and children (including delightful observations of his own baby's smiles and pouts), of the insane, of painting and sculpture, of cats and dogs and monkeys, and of the ways that people in different cultures express their feelings, Darwin's insights have not been surpassed by modern science. This definitive edition contains a substantial new Introduction and Afterword by Paul Ekman. Ekman also provides commentaries that use the latest scientific knowledge to elaborate, support, and occasionally challenge Darwin's study. When it originally appeared, this was the first scientific book to contain photographic reproductions. For this edition, Ekman has returned to Darwin's original notes in order to produce, for the first time, a corrected, authoritative text illustrated by drawings and photographs positioned exactly as its author intended.
The Expression of Emotion in Man and Animals reminds us that, in addition to being the nineteenth century's most influential thinker, Darwin was also a writer of consummate skill. Beautifully and profusely illustrated, and filled with insights that immediately ring true, this new edition promises to delight and enthrall a new generation of readers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"Even cows, when they frisk about from pleasure, throw up their tails in a ridiculous fashion." So writes Charles Darwin in his magnum opus on how humans and animals display such emotions as fear, anger, disdain, and pleasure; it is work that has in most respects been sustained by later scientific research. First published in 1872, Darwin's greatest work was never issued in quite the shape its author intended: bits and pieces were left out of subsequent printings, most of them released after Darwin's death, and later editors made additions to suit the intellectual fashion of their times. This definitive edition, heavily annotated, brings us the book that Darwin would have wanted, and it is essential to any naturalist's library.

From Scientific American

Ekman's edition is no mere reprint plus introduction. The text itself is not a reprint, because Ekman has collated the previous editions and Darwin's manuscripts and corrected some errors. He has also added a particularly good afterword, in which he describes the 20th-century debate about whether emotional expressions are a human universal.... The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals is one of Darwin's most readable works. It is alive with anecdotes, literary quotations and his own observations of his friends and children. Artificial-intelligence nerds, neuropsychiatric white-coats and magazine psychobabblers all have some way to go in understanding the emotions, and there will be no better inspiration for them (and the rest of us) than the ideas of one of the master intellects of all time, in this smart new edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 473 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 3rd edition (April 9, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195112717
• ISBN-13: 978-0195112719
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.7 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,277,951 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 47 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't buy this edition! February 9, 2008

By K. Driscoll

Format:Paperback

OK, so clearly I was fooled by Amazon's practice of listing all reviews of a particular book regardless of edition. My mistake. The positive reviews this book has received are no doubt deserved, but this copy is unreadable. It is, as far as I can tell, a print-out of the public domain text, cheaply bound and so minimally formatted that italics are represented by _underscores_ and the right-hand margin is not even justified. The cover image isn't even correctly proportioned, which, given the original image, is pretty shocking in and of itself.

I can't believe Amazon are even selling this thing. It's a disgrace. I could have produced a better copy myself for less money! The text is in the public domain, so if you don't care what format it's in, just download it for free and print it out. Otherwise, go for the new edition which got such good reviews.

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A magnificent book, splendid new edition! November 15, 1998

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

Ever since I received Paul EkmanŐs new edition of DarwinŐs classic work, the book has been my constant companion. I carry it with me from room to room, picking it up to read whenever I have a few minutes.

You can open to just about any page and discover yet another gem. Whether you find a bit to read by chance, or whether you like to be guided by the fascinating table of contents and index, or whether you prefer to begin at the beginning, Darwin is always interesting and accessible. In view of our troubled world, I find it helpful to remember that empathy is an essential part of human and animal nature. It seems the study of emotion must lead us toward a deeper understanding of these universal, powerful forces that energize and transform our lives.

ÒExpressionÓ is really an old friend. As a young dance therapist in the 1960s, I was impressed first by DarwinŐs ability to describe the dynamic process of expressive movement. Obviously it is the emotions that motivate and shape the way we move. I learned then that his observations were gathered over a period of 30 years. His subjects included not only all kinds of animals, but also human infants, children and adults from every walk of life and from many different cultures. He approached the study of emotional expression from the perspective of art, literature and inner experience, as well as from muscles and the nervous system. Although it was first published over 125 years ago (1872) DarwinŐs work continues to inspire and inform contemporary research in many fields.

The new edition is simply outstanding. Paul EkmanŐs editing is clearly a Òlabor of love,Ó and at the same time a thorough, original scholarly contribution. I particularly like the way he places DarwinŐs work in a cultural and social/political context. EkmanŐs commentary offers rich resources as he quietly updates, re-frames or differs, yet more than anything, confirms and extends DarwinŐs observations. It is as if Ekman and Darwin were engaged in a kind of dialogue, each learning from the other. Thereader is a privileged witness.

Joan Chodorow

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars After the BEAGLE, Darwin's "funnest" book! July 4, 2001

By John Anderson

Format:Hardcover

This is the second book that I throw my serious students after I make them read the Voyage. While the subject is serious, there is more than a hint of play throughout, and one can just imagine Darwin observing his own children for clues to discuss as each chapter unfolds. Although this book is of course not nearly as important as the Origin or even Descent, it is essentially part of the Long Argument, and is a great way of bringing behavioural topics to the fore in any discussion of evolution. A pity it is that many modern popularizers of "evolutionary psychology" seem to have missed parts of the form and substance that Darwin expresses here.