Are humans unique? Can animals think as we do? Will machines ever be conscious? What is free will? For centuries, attempts to answer these questions have been the stuff of theological and philosophical dispute, as well as bar-room debate. Now scientists claim they can solve these riddles of human existence, once and for all. In doing so they promise to upset many of the accepted ideas of morality and human nature. Man, Beast and Zombie is a thrillingly original and accessible book. Huge in its reach and powerful in its grasp, it draws on cutting-edge sciences such as evolutionary biology, cognitive psychology and Artificial Intelligence to assess what, precisely, they can and cannot explain about human nature. Kenan Malik explains the histories of these sciences and the philosophies that underpin them and analyses the complex relationship between human beings, animals and machines to explore what really makes us human. Malik's conclusions are important and controversial. He demonstrates that much contemporary Darwinism is flawed, how behaviours that occur universally in human beings are not necessarily biological in origin and that the existence of 'intelligence' genes, or 'aggression' genes is nonsense. Though wholly committed to reason and the scientific process, Man, Beast and Zombie challenges head-on some of today's most cherished theories. It deftly interweaves philosophy, science and history to answer the most fundamental question of all: What Are We?
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Writer and neuroscientist Kenan Malik follows his highly acclaimed The Meaning of Race with the weighty and ambitious Man, Beast and Zombie: What Science Can and Cannot Tell Us About Human Nature. The book, Malik tells us, is "in part an exploration of the scientific arguments about human nature; in part it is a study of cultural history, about the impact of intellectual and cultural changes on scientific conceptions of the human; and in part it is an attempt to understand the philosophical framework within which the contemporary science of Man works". At the heart of the book are well-informed and often discriminating critical discussions of evolutionary psychology and cognitive science. For instance, Malik denies that the claims of sociobiologists or evolutionary psychologists are merely political claims masquerading as scientific ones or that the claims of EP are inherently racist. He treats both sociobiology and EP as serious--albeit seriously flawed--contributions to the debate about human nature.
Malik wants to recover the humanist vision epitomised by Jacob Bronowski's wonderful series of 30 years ago, The Ascent of Man, and to counter the prevailing pessimistic, sceptical, ironic, self-regarding spirit of the age: a view which allows us to think of Man as "weak, wretched, barbarous, savage, inhuman, as maniacs and murderers, tramps, mobs, rabble, flotsam, vermin. But never again, it seems, as dignified and noble, or as the measure of all things".
The shame of it is that Malik's humanist vision is never really fleshed out and so the detailed criticisms of evolutionary psychologists and cognitive scientists swing free of the question of whether or not those particular individuals and their work actually do exacerbate the bleakly pessimistic view of Man Malik describes.
More generally Man, Beast and Zombie falls short of the broad synthesis of philosophy, cultural history and science it purports to be because the various parts do not make a satisfying, persuasive whole. Nevertheless it is still a well-written, detailed and informative book for those interested in the Darwin Wars and the intra/inter-disciplinary squabbles which characterise it. --Larry Brown
Review
'Man, Beast and Zombie is sure to take its place as the most thoughtful and insightful assessment of the contemporary claims of science. Kenan Malik is even-handed between science's friends and foes, and he steers a course all of his own. Not least, he is a most accomplished writer.' -- Roy Porter
'A ray of common sense in a fog of pseudoscience - Brilliant.' -- Steve Jones
'A ray of common sense in a fog of pseudoscience - Brilliant.' -- Steve Jones
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
As a history of the ideas of Darwin, genetics and the collision of the hard and soft sciences it's hard to fault. A good companion to 'The Darwin Wars' by Andrew Brown. However the 'great synthesis' he teases us with throughout the book, while perfectly reasonable, comes as rather a damp squib. If I have a complaint it is that he, as does Brown, pretty much skips Kimura's neutral theory. This is something I'd like to know more about, but I have a terrible feeling that it wouldn't sit too well with the rest of the book. Also I feel he is far too indulgent with Daniel Dennett, anyone claiming a universal solution to everything should be treated with more caution. The spat between the intemperate philosopher and H. Allen Orr gives an entirely different impression to that given here. Dennett seems to have a Sokalist (without the good intentions) approach to his work, talking philosophy to scientists, science to philosophers and combining the two to terrify the superstitious stiffs in the pop science section. All in all though, a worthwhile read.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
This is a popular yet lucid science book, which is both gripping to read and thoroughly intellectual and humanist in its outlook. Perhaps the most refreshing aspect of the book is the implicit case made throughout for greater scientific rationality not only in the social sciences, but also the natural sciences as well. As such, it should be read by scientists, social scientists and public alike.
Written by a science journalist, the author investigates key new developments in the fields of genetics, neuroscience, ethology and evolutionary biology that have implications for the human condition and in this context asks, what is it to be human? This in itself is no small feat and provides a fascinating read. But the book is not just a summary of recent scientific research.
The author investigates how and why science of the human condition is often influenced by prevailing social prejudices. He argues why some of the basic assumptions of natural science applied to humanity need to be rethought. His thesis is that the starting point for any materialist understanding of humanity must be the non-natural gulf that exists between humans and non-human animals. In other words, humans are not simply natural creatures, but also social beings. The trick is being able to marry the two in a scientific manner.
This book is a treat. Buy it!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I was lucky enough to hear Kenan Malik speak at The Maverick Club in London. The questions raised following his speech were a testament to the provocative character of his work. Among the questions asked by members of the audience were: Does the popularisation of evolutionary psychology and biology actually affect the way we live our lives? Is the distinction between understanding the natural world and the human world not just one of differing complexity, rather than, as Malik claims, one of fundamentally different phenomenon requiring different tools of understanding?
Man, Beast and Zombie continues the critique of biological thinking previously made by Malik in The Meaning of Race. It deserves to be read by all those concerned with both the scientific and the social.
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