The Human Animal: A Personal View of the Human Species

Everything we do has an inborn, genetic basis, and all our activities show similarities to those of other species. Man is unique, though, in the way in which he has built on these animal patterns, exaggerating and elaborating them to an astounding degree or suppressing them with damaging consequences. Morris sets out to show that, despite our inclination to believe otherwise, human behaviour is full of animal instinct and reaction, and that whatever the species, we all share remarkable similarities. A fascinating, candid and entertaining exploration of man in the animal kingdom, this work sets out to expose our foibles and celebrate our triumphs in an attempt to understand emotion, language, social behaviour and custom. It also shows how, despite many fascinating superficial differences, every one of the 5000 million human beings alive today shares an almost identical genetic inheritance. Morris discusses the body language, gestures, facial expressions, sexual signals and the territorial instincts which, with slight variation, we all seem to share. Desmond Morris is a expert on animal and human behaviour. His television credits include presenting "Zootime", "The Animals Roadshow", and "The Animal Country". He is a bestselling author and has published numerous works, the most notable of which are: "Babywatching" (1991), "Animalwatching" (1990), "The Illustrated Naked Ape" (1986), "Bodywatching" (1985), "Manwatching" (1977), and "The Human Zoo" (1969).