Nature, Human, Mother, They, Shape, Maternal, Instincts, Species

Mother Nature: Maternal Instincts and How They Shape the Human Species

• ISBN13: 9780345408938
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

Maternal instinct--the all-consuming, utterly selfless love that mothers lavish on their children--has long been assumed to be an innate, indeed defining element of a woman's nature. But is it? In this provocative, groundbreaking book, renowned anthropologist (and mother) Sarah Blaffer Hrdy shares a radical new vision of motherhood and its crucial role in human evolution.

Hrdy strips away stereotypes and gender-biased myths to demonstrate that traditional views of maternal behavior are essentially wishful thinking codified as objective observation. As Hrdy argues, far from being "selfless," successful primate mothers have always combined nurturing with ambition, mother love with sexual love, ambivalence with devotion. In fact all mothers, in the struggle to guarantee both their own survival and that of their offspring, deal nimbly with competing demands and conflicting strategies.

In her nuanced, stunningly original interpretation of the relationships between mothers and fathers, mothers and babies, and mothers and their social groups, Hrdy offers not only a revolutionary new meaning to motherhood but an important new understanding of human evolution. Written with grace and clarity, suffused with the wisdom of a long and distinguished career, Mother Nature is a profound contribution to our understanding of who we are as a species--and why we have become this way.Mother Nature: A History of Mothers, Infants, and Natural Selection should be required reading for anyone who happens to be a human being. In it, Hrdy reveals the motivations behind some of our most primal and hotly contested behavioral patterns--those concerning gender roles, mate choice, sex, reproduction, and parenting--and the ideas and institutions that have grown up around them. She unblinkingly examines and illuminates such difficult subjects as control of reproductive rights, infanticide, "mother love," and maternal ambition with its ever-contested companions: child care and the limits of maternal responsibility. Without ever denying personal accountability, she points out that many of the patterns of abuse and neglect that we see in cultures around the world (including, of course, our own) are neither unpredictable nor maladaptive in evolutionary terms. "Mother" Nature, as she points out, is not particularly concerned with what we call "morality." The philosophical and political implications of our own deeply-rooted behaviors are for us to determine--which can be done all the better with the kind of understanding gleaned from this exhaustive work.

Hrdy's passion for this material is evident, and she is deeply aware of the personal stake she has here as a woman, a mother, and a professional. This highly accomplished author relies on her own extensive research background as well as the works of others in multiple disciplines (anthropology, primatology, sociobiology, psychology, and even literature). Despite the exhaustive documentation given to her conclusions (as witness the 140-plus-page notes and bibliography sections), the book unfolds in an exceptionally lucid, readable, and often humorous manner. It is a truly compelling read, highly recommended. --Katherine Ferguson









List Price: $ 19.95



Price: $ 8.95

Other posts like this, by keyword:

Nature:

The Energy of Nature ...
Cosmic Conversations: Dialogues on the Nature of the Universe and the Search for Reality ...
Crews team up to boost little-known nature trail.(Recreation)(Crilly Nature Trail at Armitage Park offers easy hiking with an interpretive b ...
Track: Nature Coast boys, Gulf girls win at Gator Distance Carnival ...
Nature (How Artists View) Reviews ...
London nature: Epping Forest yoga session ...
Thornton W. Burgess Society Green Briar Nature Center, Jam Kitchen and Museum ...
Digital Landscape and Nature Photography For Dummies ...
Laws and Lawmakers: Science, Metaphysics, and the Laws of Nature ...
Building with Nature: Inspiration for the Arts and Crafts Home ...
Human:

Atlas of Human Anatomy, Vol. 2: Trunk, Viscera, Lower Limb (Sobotta) ...
Dying for the Gods: Human Sacrifice in Iron Age & Roman Europe ...
Natural Reflections: Human Cognition at the Nexus of Science and Religion (The Terry Lectures Series) ...
Human Resource Management in a Business Context ...
Conceptual Issues in Modern Huamn Origins Research (Foundations of Human Behavior) ...
Human geography of the South; a study in regional resources and human adequacy Reviews ...
What careers are available to Human Services majors? ...
Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior ...
Order of Things: An Archaeology of the Human Sciences (Routledge Classics) ...
Effective Human Relations: Personal and Organizational Applications ...
Mother:

Mother Teresa: HER LIFE HER WORKS ...
“The future of a child is the work of the mother “. Mothers educators without any specific studies ? ...
Maybe Mother Did Know Best:: Old-Fashioned Parenting the Modern Way ...
Founding mother of the big auction handles change ...
The Revolt of “Mother” and Other Stories (Dover Thrift Editions) ...
Mother Benedict: Foundress of the Abbey of Regina Laudis ...
The Real Mother Goose Book of American Rhymes Reviews ...
Mother Wove the Morning ...
Nutrition and Metabolism in Pregnancy: Mother and Fetus ...
The Mother of His Child (Romance) ...
They:

The Karma in Your Relationships: Bonds from Other Times and What They Want from Us ...
They Don’t Have To Die, 2nd Edition: Home adn Classroom Care for Small Animals ...
Making Schools Work : A Revolutionary Plan to Get Your Children the Education They Need ...
How did we get from killing vampires and thinking that they were evil to loving them? ...
Q&A: what should I read next. I am not afraid of long epics if they are good.? ...
They could be chasin’ but they’ve got nothin’ on… this Mars e-chat ...
Cherished: 21 Writers on Animals They Have Loved and Lost ...
It’s never too soon to watch what they eat ...
If someone converts to Judaism, are they really going to be considered Jews? ...
They Tasted Glory: Among the Missing at the Baseball Hall of Fame Reviews ...
Shape:

Shape up with her ...
Tina Vindum’s Outdoor Fitness: Step Out of the Gym and Into the BEST Shape of Your Life ...
HOW TO MAKE A HOMEMADE DRESSFORM of Your EXACT Body Shape & Size! (sewing sew dress form Kindle download e-book ebook vintage) ...
The Shape of Water (Inspector Montalbano, Book 1) ...
Getting Back in Shape: 32 Workout Programs for Lifelong Fitness ...
Knockout Fitness: Boxing Workouts to Get You in the Best Shape of Your Life ...
How did the revolutionary writers shape the american dream? ...
Maternal:

The Signs and Minor Diseases of Pregnancy, With Remarks on the Use of Chloroform, and the Maternal Management of Infants ...
Pregnancy and Birth Sourcebook: Basic Information About Planning for Pregnancy, Maternal Health, Fetal Growth and Development (Health Refere ...
Maternal Fitness: Preparing for a Healthy Pregnancy, an Easier Labor, and a Quick Recovery ...
Article shows link between maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy, SIDS ...
Instincts:

Animal Instincts (Hqn) ...
Species:

Study finds remarkable diversity of lichen species in Florida state park ...
The Origin of Species By Means of Natural Selection / The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex (Great Books of the Western World, ...