Why Is Sex Fun?: The Evolution Of Human Sexuality (Science Masters) (Paperback)

Why is Sex Fun? reads like a lecture series rather than a book. Apparently intended to provide the reader with an overview of the latest thinking on the evolutionary aspects of the subject, this short work includes sections on different sexual (and mate) selection strategies employed by males and females (presumably based on unequal "investments" in the methods of getting one's genes into the next generation); lactation (why milk is produced by females, but not, as a rule, males); how and why humans, almost uniquely, came to engage in engage in recreational sex; the unequal domestic roles played by males and females, particularly in child rearing; female menopause (which is, again, nearly unique to humans); and sexual signaling (Diamond considers penis length in human males to be a prime example, but not necessarily a signal directed at females).

As fascinating as these subjects are, there is much more that is left out. Any full discussion of human sexuality, especially with the high-order concept of "fun" in its presumed abstract, needs to deal with that odd species' whole gamut of non-procreational expression: homosexuality, old-age love, and sex-as-power, for non-inclusive example. But Why is Sex Fun? treats the very large subject of recreational sex only from the "selfish gene" point of view. Even then, there is at least one major methodological criticism: Most evolutionary biologists and evolutionary psychologists go to great lengths to bring out the importance of "ancestral environment". That is, gene-based behavioral tendencies have evolved over a great deal of time, so it doesn't do a lot of good to consider them only from the standpoint of a modern participant. This problem crops up in Diamond's discussion of male hunting strategies. In a modern hunter-gatherer society, men typically go for the "big kill" (a large mammal, for instance), while women are more content to gather roots and so on. Diamond makes the point that the male strategy makes no sense nutritionally, so the answer must be found in differential sexual strategies. However, the possibility is not mentioned that hunting patterns may have evolved when big game was, in fact, rather more plentiful than it is today.

All this is a pity, because we know, from the author's other works (especially the wonderfully told Guns, Germs, and Steel), that he is quite capable of a fully formed presentation. Sex deserves it.

So, if you want to see the spicy sections only, this is your book, but if you buy "The Third Chimpanzee" you get a fuller picture and all the hot topics as well.

Philipp Schaumann Singapore

The rather sour reviewer below makes a good point that the book contains material familiar to those of us already acquainted with the subject, but that in no way detracts from its value. In my experience, most people, even those otherwise sophisticated and well-educated, do not sufficiently appreciate the importance of evolution. Though they may understand it intellectually, they fail to see evolutionary forces playing a fundamental role in human behavior, and therefore constantly misdiagnose problems and prescribe inappropriate solutions. Their number includes Christians, feminists, and those dealing with racial issues on both sides of the political spectrum--a fairly large chunk of society. Personally, I am here at Amazon to send copies to three friends, all educated at top universities, one a professor of chemistry in one of India's most elite universities. I expect that they will get something out of it, although the (feminist) professor may not take it quite the way I want....

OK, one comment on the book's fun nature: It is fascinating to read anecdotes from Diamond's studies of primates and hunter-gatherer societies, same as it was reading anecdotes about ants and termites in the books by Edward O. Wilson. I'd like to take Wilson and Diamond to lunch someday, and just sit back and listen.