Are Men Animals?

“Are men animals? Well yes, but so are we all. How much does that explain about male behavior? Not much, according to Gutmann, compared to the dominant role of social and cultural factors in male sexuality and aggression. This is a powerful and important work.”
–Sherry Ortner, distinguished professor of anthropology at UCLA
“Everything men (and women) do in our society is the product of both biology and culture. As ably explained by Matthew Gutmann in this lively and enlightening book, this means that male behavior is hardly immutable. It has more degrees of freedom than often assumed.”–Frans de Waal, C. H.Candler Professor of Psychology at Emory University and author of Mama’sLast Hug and What They Tell Us About Ourselves
“Gutmann does more than deconstruct simplistic notions of masculinity-he offers us a better vision of what it means to be masculine. He knows we can do better, and create anew a reality where masculinity and humanity comingle instead of conflict. This book is wholly appropriate for this moment in time.”–Agustín Fuentes, Edmund P. Joyce C.S.C. Professor ofAnthropology at University of Notre Dame and author of The CreativeSpark
“We need a national conversation about whether our cultural expectations of men have made them into the animals we believe them to be. Can men be less aggressive, less sexual and less dominant? This provocative book argues strongly that the answer is yes. This is a golden moment to begin that conversation.”–TM Luhrmann, professor of anthropology, Stanford University

Matthew Gutmann is a professor of anthropology at Brown University who has spent thirty years exploring notions of masculinity across the United States, Latin America, and China. He also has been a visiting professor at El Colegio de México and Nanjing University, and is the author of eight books. He lives in Tiverton, Rhode Island.

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