If you hear a metallic rasp as you open the cover of Cordelia Fine's new book, don't be alarmed. It's just the sound of the author sharpening her knives, the better to carve up the carcass of what she calls "Testosterone Rex": the big, scaly body of assumptions, preconceptions, conjectures and distortions regarding "what men are like" and "what women are like." Fine takes on this king of all biases with admirable vigor, and it's a pleasure…to follow the action as she dismembers the beast. She dissects as she goes, bringing a probing intelligence not only to what we believe about gender, and why it's often wrong, but also to the history of how we came to think it was so…Beliefs about men and women are as old as humanity itself, but Fine's funny, spiky book gives reason to hope that we've heard Testosterone rex's last roar.
Many people believe that, at its core, biological sex is a fundamental, diverging force in our development. According to this familiar story, differences between the sexes are shaped by past evolutionary pressures-women are more cautious and parenting-focused, men seek status to attract more mates-re-created in each generation by sex hormones and male and female brains. This, in turn, is the basis of supposedly entrenched inequalities in our modern societies. But in this entertaining and rigorous exploration of the latest research, Cordelia Fine draws on evolutionary science, psychology, neuroscience, endocrinology, and philosophy to reveal a much more dynamic situation. Testosterone, for instance, is not the potent hormonal essence of masculinity, and received wisdoms about differences between the sexes, from toy preferences to financial risk taking, are turned on their heads. Moving beyond the old "nature" versus "nurture" debates, Testosterone Rex reinvigorates hope and determination for a more equal future.
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Testosterone Rex: Myths of Sex, Science, and Society
Many people believe that, at its core, biological sex is a fundamental, diverging force in our development. According to this familiar story, differences between the sexes are shaped by past evolutionary pressures-women are more cautious and parenting-focused, men seek status to attract more mates-re-created in each generation by sex hormones and male and female brains. This, in turn, is the basis of supposedly entrenched inequalities in our modern societies. But in this entertaining and rigorous exploration of the latest research, Cordelia Fine draws on evolutionary science, psychology, neuroscience, endocrinology, and philosophy to reveal a much more dynamic situation. Testosterone, for instance, is not the potent hormonal essence of masculinity, and received wisdoms about differences between the sexes, from toy preferences to financial risk taking, are turned on their heads. Moving beyond the old "nature" versus "nurture" debates, Testosterone Rex reinvigorates hope and determination for a more equal future.
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Product Details
BN ID: | 2940171332921 |
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Publisher: | HighBridge Company |
Publication date: | 01/24/2017 |
Edition description: | Unabridged |
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