The Emperor's Embrace: Reflections on Animal Families and Fatherhood

The Emperor's Embrace: Reflections On Animal Families And Fatherhood The Emperor's Embrace is quite simply the seminal and definitive guide to animal fatherhood. Masson is the author of two previous books about the behavior and emotional lives of animals, When Elephants Weep and Dogs Never Lie About Love, and in this book he turns his lens to the often ignored area of animal fathers. In addition to surveying the behavior of fathers throughout the animal kingdom, Masson offers many meditations on how we interpret animal behavior as well as colorful vignettes that illustrate the astonishing range of parenting by animal fathers. Masson opens with a chapter devoted primarily to the Emperor Penguin, whose amazing feats of fatherhood have by now been popularized in films and books, some of which have been reviewed on this site. This introductory chapter is nevertheless fascinating for Masson's discussion of the history and methods of how humans came to understand penguin behavior, which frames the many other examples of the behavior of animal fathers that he gives throughout the book. These are fascinating in part because they portray acts of extraordinary parental devotion by fathers in areas that are commonly assumed to be the exclusive domain of females, such as the male tamarind monkey who assists the female during birth or the male rhea(a relative of the ostrich) who incubates the eggs and then raises the chicks alone. But they are also intriguing for the sheer breadth of exceptional animal fathers across the animal kingdom, including not only mammals such as beavers and prairie dogs but also numerous birds, fish and even amphibians. There are also chapters that explore issues such as monogamy and pair-bonding, establishing paternity, bad animal fathers, and why paternal care is more common among egg-laying species than among mammals. Throughout, Masson attempts to illuminate not only the behavior and biology of animal fathers but also their emotional lives as well, and makes a strong case that far more than instinct is at work when a father cares for his offspring. Engrossing and often surprising, The Emperor's Embrace puts the lie to the idea that mothers are inherently more suited to care for children than fathers due to some kind of biological destiny, and will make any man proud to count himself part of a fraternity of fatherhood that extends not only to other humans but to our animal cousins as well.

While it is true that Masson asserts some claims in this book that are not yet proven at this point, he also states right away that he IS NOT a scientist. He is however, an amazing author and researcher. Every claim he asserts, while perhaps not backed by biology (yet) is followed by several extremely convincing examples. he has wonderful insight and some delightful thoughts and theories on animal behavior that the scientific community would do well to explore. Because Masson is not limited to the rules of scientific hypotheses, he has the ability to ask, not only "Why?", but also "Why not?" He reminds us that just because something has not YET been proven, does not mean its impossible. We discover new truths everyday. Read this book. Read what he has to say. Allow yourself to consider the possibilities. Ask yourself "Why not?" Then form your own opinion. This book may lead you to think in new directions, even if it convinces you of nothing else.

Makes you wonder in the land of rich investigation and nuanced reflexions about fatherhood in general and animals(human included) in particular.

A splendid and important book, a must-read for everyone who cares about the natural world and how we fit into it.