Chapter 3, The Evolution of Human Sexuality Summary and Analysis

Human sexuality is an unusually developed trait for primates as it is largely divorced from reproduction; most primates engage in sexual activity only to procreate. Additionally, our social structure is strange for a primate - most monogamous primates live as isolated pairs while most social primates engage in polygyny or are flagrantly promiscuous. Humans are unique among primates in being both social and monogamous. The pair bonding found among humans is probably due to the inordinately high burden of childcare found within human societies. Children mature slowly and demand an enormous amount of physical care and cultural education - these processes demand two parents. The author notes that humans are not distinct in any trait, but are only distinct by degree in some traits - that is, any human trait can...