Description
The 'Man the Hunter' model of the 1960s was simultaneously one of the most influential and reviled of ideas about human origins. It fell easy victim to numerous criticisms (drawn especially from work on chimpanzees), and dropped from favor during the 1970s. There was, however, a baby in that bath and Stanford has rescued it, dried it off, and refined it with volumes of new data and theory. The result is a sophisticated and provocative synthesis of eMan the Hunteri and chimpanzee behavioral ecology. -- Jim Moore, University of California, San Diego Stanford's essay neatly captures the powerful role that hunting has played in human evolution and in the minds of evolutionists. -- Richard Wrangham, Harvard University, author of "Demonic Males: Apes and the Originis of Human Violence"
About the Author
Craig B. Stanford is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Co-Director of the Jane Goodall Research Center at the University of Southern California. He has conducted field studies of apes and monkeys in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. His other works include Chimpanzee and Red Colobus.
Reviews
"A provocative, eminently digestible book... Stanford writes clearly and often deftly, and with admirable concision... [A] marvelous exploration of evolutionary hypotheses ... fascinating stuff."--Michael Pakenham, The Baltimore Sun "Anyone who would like to review all of the arguments on human origins should read The Hunting Apes... This book will go a long way in explaining why physical anthropologists and their colleagues fight so much."--Deborah L. Manzolillo, Times Literary Supplement "A brave academic endeavour and a fine piece of popular science writing... Stanford's book summarises a huge body of evidence in a pleasing, coherent and non-polemic way. You'll feel that you're talking with a learned ... dinner companion, rather than enduring a lecture or hectoring sermon from an academic pulpit."--Adrian Barnett, New Scientist "Stanford's ideas, while controversial, are amply documented by behavioral studies of nonhuman primates, anthropological studies of a number of human societies and archeological studies of early and pre-humans."--Publishers Weekly "[A] provocative new look at what made people so smart... This is a fascinating book, written for the nonspecialist."--Booklist "An unabashed celebration of the carnivorous tendencies of early humankind. Virtually every aspect of Stanford's thesis about the importance of meat acquisition and sharing among early humans is steeped in controversy."--Kirkus Reviews "[An] admirable little book... [Stanford's] meticulously constructed study is both readable and thought-provoking and gives fascinating insights into the behaviour of our species."--The Tablet "The Hunting Apes is a very enjoyable and quick read, written for a broad audience... These are well-written synopses--good for students, the general informed public, and those in anthropology and other sub-disciplines who want to keep up on these topics."--M. Tappen, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute
Book Information
ISBN 9780691088884
Author Craig B. Stanford
Format Paperback
Page Count 272
Imprint Princeton University Press
Publisher Princeton University Press
Weight(grams) 255g