Natural Selection and Social Theory: Selected Papers of Robert Trivers (Evolution and Cognition Series) (Paperback)

by Robert Trivers (Author) "It was the spring semester of 1969 and the population geneticist Richard Lewontin had come to Harvard to deliver a talk on a new methodology..." (more)
Key Phrases: human reciprocal altruism, differential male mortality, reparative altruism, New York, United States, Ernst Mayr (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Robert Trivers is one of the leading figures pioneering the field of sociobiology. For Natural Selection and Social Theory, he has selected eleven of his most influential papers, including several classic papers from the early 1970s on the evolution of reciprocal altruism, parent-offspring conflicts and asymmetry in sexual selection, which helped to establish the centrality of sociobiology, as well as some of his later on deceit in signalling, sex antagonistic genes, and imprinting. Trivers introduces each paper, setting them in their contemporary context, and critical evaluating them in the light of subsequent work and further developments. The result is a unique portrait of the intellectual development of sociobiology, with valuable insights of interest to evolutionary biology, anthropology, and psychology.

About the Author
Robert L. Trivers is at Rutgers University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; illustrated edition edition (September 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195130626
• ISBN-13: 978-0195130621
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #624,716 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yippee!!!, November 29, 2002

By	John Anderson (Bar Harbor, ME USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Natural Selection and Social Theory: Selected Papers of Robert Trivers (Evolution and Cognition Series) (Hardcover)

Those of us who are interested in the stories behind just HOW major breakthroughs in evolutionary and ecological thought were made have been spoiled in recent years: First there was W.D. Hamilton's marvelous 2 volume NARROW ROADS OF GENE LAND, now we get Bob Triver's wonderful NATURAL SELECTION AND SOCIAL THEORY. Here, in one place, one can find most of Trivers' revolutionary work on the evolution of social behavior, and as an added bonus one also gets Trivers' unvarnished -and often highly entertaining- commentary on just how he came to put together the ideas that -love 'em or hate 'em- provided much of the driving force behind Sociobiology & ultimately lead to Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Psychology. Along the way we are introduced to a fascinating cast of characters, ranging from Ernst Mayr, the foremost living Darwinian, through the neo-Marxist wing of Harvard, to Huey Newton, ex-Minister of Defense for the Black Panthers. Trivers' thinking is as eclectic and far ranging as the list of his friends and enemies, and while many of his subjects (altruism, parent-offspring conflict, fluctuating asymmetry, etc.) are still at the cutting edge of evolutionary thought, his writing is sufficiently free of jargon that I think it will draw in even the non-specialist. You may not agree with everything that Trivers says here -and I suspect that some folks will be offended by his candor- but this is a really important book & I see it as essential reading for any of us interested in the question of why we may do so many of the things that we do. Bravo!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic paper, plus plus why, PLUS where too now, February 27, 2006

By	Timothy Bates "Who is John Galt?" (Edinburgh, UK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book contains all of Robert Triver's best papers.

In addition, each is book-ended between a two short essays outlining the background to Professor Trivers' initial exploration and thinking behind the paper, often including quite intriguing sociological contexts. Then, which is extremely valuable, Triver's brings the reader up-to-date with the subsequent history of the idea in that paper: who did it influence? Does he still believe it? What is the current hot take on the area?

It is a magnificent tribute to a life-time of work, and valuable for anyone active in the area of evolution.

9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for social scientists and others, February 11, 2004

By	"le934" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This is a beautiful book. It combines seminal papers with anecdotes and a post-scripts which place the paper in their context and make it easier for those of us who have been consumers of socio-biology to better appreciate the significance of the ideas presented. Trivers is a compelling writer and this book is a true gift to anybody curious about human psyche and behaviour. Highly recommended.