Author: Desmond Morris
Year: 1969
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Genres/categories:
Science, Non Fiction, Psychology
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ISBNs:
9781568361048
9780099482116
1568361041
0099482118 |
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The author finds remarkable similarities with captive zoo animals and looks closely at the aggressive, sexual and parental behaviour of the human species under the stresses and pressures of urban living.
How does city life change the way we act? What accounts for the increasing prevalence of violence and anxiety in our world?
In this controversial 1969 bestseller, renowned zoologist Desmond Morris argues that many of the social instabilities we face are largely a product of the artificial, impersonal confines of our urban surroundings. Indeed, our behavior often startlingly resembles that of captive animals, and our "developed" and "urbane" environment seems not so much a concrete jungle as it does a human zoo.
Animals do not normally exhibit stress, random violence, and erratic behavior—until they are confined. Similarly, the human propensity toward antisocial and sociopathic behavior is intensified in today's cities. Morris argues that we are biologically still tribal and ill-equipped to thrive in the impersonal urban sprawl. As important and meaningful today as it was a quarter-century ago, The human zoo sounds an urgent warning and provides startling insight into our increasingly complex lives.
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