Sex at Dawn: The Prehistoric Origins of Modern Sexuality

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More About This Book

Overview

Since Darwin's day, we've been told that sexual monogamy comes naturally to our species. Mainstream science—as well as religious and cultural institutions—has maintained that men and women evolved in families in which a man's possessions and protection were exchanged for a woman's fertility and fidelity. But this narrative is collapsing. Fewer and fewer couples are getting married, and divorce rates keep climbing as adultery and flagging libido drag down even seemingly solid marriages.

How can reality be reconciled with the accepted narrative? It can't be, according to renegade thinkers Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethå. While debunking almost everything we "know" about sex, they offer a bold alternative explanation in this provocative and brilliant book.

Ryan and Jethå's central contention is that human beings evolved in egalitarian groups that shared food, child care, and, often, sexual partners. Weaving together convergent, frequently overlooked evidence from anthropology, archaeology, primatology, anatomy, and psychosexuality, the authors show how far from human nature monogamy really is. Human beings everywhere and in every era have confronted the same familiar, intimate situations in surprisingly different ways. The authors expose the ancient roots of human sexuality while pointing toward a more optimistic future illuminated by our innate capacities for love, cooperation, and generosity.

With intelligence, humor, and wonder, Ryan and Jethå show how our promiscuous past haunts our struggles over monogamy, sexual orientation, and family dynamics. They explore why long-term fidelity can be so difficult for so many; why sexual passion tends to fade even as love deepens; why many middle-aged men risk everything for transient affairs with younger women; why homosexuality persists in the face of standard evolutionary logic; and what the human body reveals about the prehistoric origins of modern sexuality.

In the tradition of the best historical and scientific writing, Sex at Dawn unapologetically upends unwarranted assumptions and unfounded conclusions while offering a revolutionary understanding of why we live and love as we do.

Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

When published in hardcover, this provocative tome about human sexuality was greeted by enthusiastic reviews and firm denunciations. In Sex at Dawn, Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethá argue that the human urge to sexually stray is built into our evolutionary makeup. To make their points, they draw on evolutionary research about our primate cousins, but also on recent studies of human behavior. Make no mistake though; this is not just a Darwinian discourse: The Spanish husband and wife team maintain that old trade-off between man's protection and possessions in exchange for a woman's fertility and fidelity are now collapsing. New thoughts on monogamy.

Newsweek
“Funny, witty, and light ... Sex at Dawn is a scandal in the best sense, one that will have you reading the best parts aloud and reassessing your ideas about humanity’s basic urges well after the book is done.”

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780061707803
  • Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
  • Publication date: 6/29/2010
  • Pages: 400
  • Sales rank: 161,234
  • Product dimensions: 6.00 (w) x 9.10 (h) x 1.50 (d)

Meet the Author

Christopher Ryan, PhD, is a research psychologist. He lives in Barcelona, Spain.

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4
( 74 )

Rating Distribution

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(37)

4 Star

(21)

3 Star

(10)

2 Star

(3)

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(3)

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See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 75 Customer Reviews

  • Posted July 1, 2010

    Fantastic!!! Hard to Put Down!

    This book is fantastic!!! Sure to catch on... A fascinating eye-opener that addresses questions about human sexuality that we've nearly all come across -- it may finally answer things you've always wondered about!

    It takes a close look at the origins of our prehistoric past to examine the sharing, egalitarian nature of the communal groups we evolved in, and how far we've come so far from that now in our modern, often conflicted constructs.

    The evidence is carefully researched, and the stories are captivating - taking you across history and across the globe as well, recounting fascinating anecdotes on sexual practices from cultures all over the world and examining the many surprising alternative approaches there have been to the same core issues. And it's all explained in language that's sharply intelligent -- and still fun, clear, and easy to follow.

    This brilliant debut -- by a husband/wife team, no less! -- sheds light on how understanding the way human sexuality evolved is critical to answering questions about our lives today. Why is long-term sexual monogamy so difficult for many couples? Why do middle-aged men risk so much for meaningless flings? What do our own bodies tell us about our sexual evolution?

    This book takes you on a journey that covers topics from the Origins of War to the peaceful, sexy nature of our close Bonobo cousins. If you've never picked up a text on evolutionary psychology, this is the perfect book to explain some fascinating concepts. If you're curious to travel a road that whisks you across the world to learn about exotic cultures and across time to explore our promiscuous past - you might enjoy this immensely. You could just come away knowing more about human nature - and about yourself as well!

    8 out of 10 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted March 6, 2012

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    1 out of 8 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted December 27, 2011

    Very interesting and thought provoking.

    If you have ever thought of why people act the way they do when it comes to relationships and human social interaction then this would be the book to read. It is very well written with a lot of resources that you can look at yourself to see where the authors find their information. It is not written in a dry form like some other books written on this topic, but written like a person looking for answers. This book will open your mind at why we look at sex as we do and why over time we get bored with a long term partner and could warder off looking for something new (this goes for both sexes). It takes a look at why monogamy is failing with people separating without working on underlining issues or not looking at options at keeping their relationship intact. This is look from both a physical as well as psychology view. There is so many different topics in this book a review cannot cover them all. It is a book better read with the reader drawing their own conclusions on what the author's message is and what he wants the reader to know.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted April 9, 2011

    About Time someone could say it, and back it up.

    Very readable, with a wry wit and a no nonsense approach to human and ape sexuality. This book is very well researched, and spends a fair bit of time on debunking the conventional wisdom. I suspect that it might be a bit scary to take on the established views on such a hot button topic, but the author manages to insert enough humor to help defuse the tension.

    1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted November 2, 2010

    more from this reviewer

    Great Read

    This book was fascinating. His theory seems very plausible and he presents it in a very entertaining way.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted May 5, 2012

    not a great read so far

    I bought this book because of good reviews. I am about a third through it. Not a very well written book. It doesnt flow well. Also so far arleast book focusses on proving todays take on human sexuality and monogamy wrong. This is done mainly through authors interpretations of various things. It is really not very scientific. There is no evidence to back authors theory yet. So far, there are so mnay flaws in authors argument, i am wondering if i should continue reading or not.

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  • Posted April 14, 2012

    LOVE! A new perspective!

    I loved this book. I normally don't read non-fiction but I loved the sarcastic tone sprinkled throughout this novel. I am open minded, so to read a different perspective on this topic was refreshing. Their ideas are not forced onto the reader, they are merely presented with facts to back them up. Finished this in about a week. And honestly I would have finished it sooner but I actually took a day or two in between reads to think about what I have just read.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 3, 2012

    This book asks and answers questions that I have often wondered

    This book asks and answers questions that I have often wondered about. It does so with class and humor, educating the non-scientist with clear explanation and wit!

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