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Title:
The great apes : a short history / Chris Herzfeld ; translated by Kevin Frey ; foreword by Jane Goodall.
Author:
Herzfeld, Chris, author.

Frey, Kevin, translator.

Goodall, Jane, 1934- writer of foreword.
Publication Information:
New Haven ; London : Yale University Press, [2017]

©2017
Call Number:
QL737.P94 H4713 2017
Abstract:
"A unique, beautifully illustrated exploration of our fascination with our closest primate relatives, and the development of primatology as a discipline. This insightful work is a compact but wide-ranging survey of humankind's relationship to the great apes (chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, orangutans), from antiquity to the present. Replete with fascinating historical details and anecdotes, it traces twists and turns in our construction of primate knowledge over five hundred years. Chris Herzfeld outlines the development of primatology and its key players and events, including well-known long-term field studies, notably the pioneering work by women such as Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas. Herzfeld seeks to heighten our understanding of great apes and the many ways they are like us. The reader will encounter apes living in human families, painting apes, apes who use American Sign Language, and chimpanzees who travelled in space. A philosopher and historian specializing in primatology, Herzfeld offers thought-provoking insights about our perceptions of apes, as well as the boundary between "human" and "ape" and what it means to be either." -- Publisher's description.
ISBN:
9780300221374
Physical Description:
xvi, 321 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 25 cm.
General Note:
Originally published as: Petite histoire des grands singes, ©Editions du Seuil, 2012.
Contents:
Foreword / by Jane Goodall -- The uncanniness of similitude : wild men, simians, and hybrid beings -- Skeletons, skins, and skulls : apes in the age of colonial expansion and natural history collections -- Apes as guinea pigs : primates and experimental research -- Great apes in the eyes of scientists : what does it mean to be an ape? -- Apes that think they are human : astronaut apes, painting apes, talking apes -- Conquering the field : pioneers, the quest for origins, and primates -- Socialities, culture, and traditions among primates : when the boundary between humans and apes blurs -- Women and apes : sex, gender, and primatology -- Becoming-human, being-ape.
Uniform Title:
Petite histoire des grands singes. English
Personal Author:
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