Intimate Behavior: A Zoologist's Classic Study of Human Intimacy

An old book dealing with a contemporary, old problem. Morris gives easy to understand observations that each reader can relate to one moves through this book. Even though the book is old the information is timeless. People have not changed in their basic nature even though some want to think we are enlightened and better than those generations before us.

I like the writings of Desmond Morris because he takes the discipline of a scientist and applies it to looking at us. He is as objective with this lens as he would be looking at other mammals. This approach cuts through some of a subjective opinions and cherished ideas about who we are and how we function. Yet at the same time, he is honoring of what we are and points to things that can help us relate to each other more healthily and more naturally. This book is no exception. My favorite of his is PEOPLE WATCHING which seems to summarize much of what he says in other books and also shows a lot with pictures.

I am new to Morris' general work but I am thourougly impressed. So far I have read this book and The Naked Ape. This book lags in certain parts, but he consistently gives detailed attention to all aspects of human intimacy - the sections Sexual Intimacy, alone (at least) are worth reading as he couragously attends to a very difficult subject of love and sex in very practical ways. His thinking on this front is well stated and offers doorways for the thinking man to manifest new ways forward for the sepcies.

Morris uses his same method of detachment and logic as that found in The Naked Ape and creates a modern guide to understanding the intimate behavior of the human animal. His philosphy is extremly simple due to the strong sense of logic that creates its foundation. Morris's work is destined to be a landmark within the future of psychology

Dr. Morris has written his most important document inside the pages of this book. It seems as if he matured after writing "The Naked Ape" and decided to condense all of the important points in his masterpiece and make it quick informative reading as "intimate Behaviour". When it was written, Morris was the head Zoologist at the London Zoo. His understanding of the human animal will answer all of the "why?" questions that your parents couldn't answer. This book should be mandatory high school reading and if it were so, speaking would be at a minimum and body language and gesturing would reign supreme.