Different: What Apes Can Teach Us About Gender

Description

How different are men and women? Is gender uniquely human or do other primates also learn gendered roles? Drawing on decades of observing other primates, especially our closest living relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos, world renowned primatologist Frans de Waal explores what we know of biological sex differences and of the role of culture and socialization, and argues that gender goes beyond a social construct. From why the sexes evolved their differences to the misunderstanding that females lack dominance and leadership in primate groups; from maternal and paternal behaviour to sexual orientation, gender identity and the limitations of the gender binary, de Waal analyses our shared evolutionary history with the apes. Where chimpanzees are male dominated and violent, bonobos are ruled by females, peaceful, and have multiple sex partners. The contrast between them opens up a new understanding of humans, as we consider what is similar and what sets us apart. Male and female networking groups, sexual signals, transgenderism and maternal bonds map closely to their behaviour, but humans stand apart in the development of nuclear families, the prevalence of sexual violence and joint parental care. With expert insight and engaging storytelling, de Waal not only sets right gendered biases that have grown up in the scientific community, but delivers a fresh and thought-provoking understanding of the behavioural norms and the many remarkable potentials of the human species.

Frans de Waal is the author of the New York Times bestseller Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? (Granta, 2016), and Mama''s Last Hug (Granta 2018), winner of the PEN award for non-fiction, among many other books. Named one of Time''s 100 Most Influential People, he is the emeritus C. H. Candler Professor of Psychology at Emory University and emeritus Distinguished Professor at the University of Utrecht. He lives in Atlanta, Georgia.

A brilliant and fascinating book that brings a scientific, compassionate and balanced approach to some of the hottest controversies about sex and gender -- Yuval Noah Harari Every new book by Frans de Waal is a cause for excitement, and this one is no different. A breath of fresh air in the cramped debate about the differences between men and women. Fascinating, nuanced and very timely. -- Rutger Bregman, author of Humankind Superb... These pages are packed with great stories, fascinating data, and thought-provoking ideas. They are sure to spark the important conversations we all-male and female, queer and straight, trans and nonbinary-need to have to create a more just and equitable human society -- Sy Montgomery, author of The Soul of an Octopus If you don't know your bonobo from your gibbon, Different has many surprises in store for you, surprises that will leave you humble about complex primate evolution has been, and how much we have yet to learn about how it shapes our lives * New York Times * This enlightened book looks at the emergent arguments in gender studies. Moving with fluidity and grace between animal and human models, Frans de Waal demonstrates how many common social prejudices that we deem "natural" are in fact anything but. His crisp writing, his skillful deployment of anecdote, and his deep knowledge of animal science inform this nuanced and profound consideration not only of difference, but also of sameness -- Andrew Solomon, author of Far From the Tree and The Noonday Demon Frans de Waal's DIFFERENT brings a refreshingly calm biological perspective to the current debate around human gender differences. -- Desmond Morris, author of The Naked Ape With great clarity, insight, and wit, [de Waal] examines human sex differences, never once letting us forget that, at the end of the day, we are just another kind of primate. This is a superb, intensely stimulating read -- Robert M. Sapolsky, author of Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst [De Waal uses] a gift for story-telling, a sincere respect for culture, along with intimate knowledge of longtime bonobo and chimpanzee associates, to deftly negotiate this treacherous terrain. Wise and humane -- Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, author of The Woman that Never Evolved Courageous... Quietly progressive... Offer[s] fascinating insights -- Kathleen Stock * The Times * Frans de Waal's magnum opus... [He] remove[s] the blinkers, and [his] readers will never see the world the same way again * TLS * A testament to de Waal's profound and sensitive understanding of our nearest evolutionary relatives -- Angela Saini * Lancet Journal * Very interesting: de Waal's often highly personal encounters with chimps and bonobos are fascinating... he is equally good on the blind spots of science and psychology * Tablet *