What's Love Got to Do with It?: The Evolution of Human Mating

By Meredith Small

Book Overview

In this refreshingly down-to-earth exploration of human mating and sexuality, an acclaimed anthropologist looks at why we fall in love with the people we do.

"A personal feminist take on the mating game." --Scientific American

An acclaimed anthropologist looks at the fascinating intersection between the imperatives of our glands and genes, and the culture in which we live. Why do we fall in love with the people we do? Is there an alternative, more feminist, way to interpret traditional human sexual biology and evolution? These are but a few of the questions that anthropologist Meredith Small explores in her compelling book on human mating, What's Love Got to Do with It?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385477023
• ISBN13: 9780385477024
• Release Date: June 1996
• Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Leaving the topic open for discussion

In this provacative book, Small talks about sex in a way that most people would not in public. She brings up some interesting and informative ideas but doesn't completley follow through with them and seldom gives her own take on the subjects. As a result, she left the door open for discussion on such topics. She has sparked my interest in sex, mating, and why we are attracted to the people we are.

great book

I absolutely loved this book. It is a nice look at the relationship between sex and culture. I would reccomend this to anyone who is interested in the evolution of human sexuality.

Interesting, thoughtful and informative

I found that this book balances scientific data, psychological research, the author's personal experiences and area of expertise, and cultural influences on human sexuality very well. The end result is a thoughtful discussion of human sexuality - why we have strong sexual urges, how millions of years of evolution still affect us today, some of the qualities people look for in mates, and so forth.While there is a certain level of repetition in the book - which the author, I believe, does in order to stress her main points - I did not find it redundant or dull; instead, I found myself coming away from the book with a clear sense of her position, which is not always the case with books exploring scientific subjects and incorporating information from different disciplines. The concrete examples with which she illustrates her points are well chosen, and I also appreciated her honesty about her own limitations in describing male sexuality.I truly enjoyed this book and learned a great deal from it, from the physiological changes that occur during sexual arousal to the complex interactions between culture and biology, the obsession with finding a 'cause' of male homosexuality and the possibility that AIDS may, in some manner, affect human evolution. I think that those looking for an accessible, thoughtful, broad and informative overview of human sexuality will find this particular book a fascinating and educating read, one I recommend highly.

An insightful overview of human behavior.

This book is an honest look at human sexual behavior. It covers a broad range of topics and offers some possible explanations for our sometimes confusing behavior. I liked the fact that the author used information from a variety of scientific areas: evolution, psychology, physiology, anthropology, etc., to explore this fascinating topic.