Desmond Morris
Desmond Morris | |
---|---|
Born | Desmond John Morris 24 January 1928 Purton, Wiltshire, England |
Alma mater | |
Occupation(s) | Zoologist and ethologist |
Known for | The Naked Ape (1967) |
Spouse |
Ramona Baulch
(m. 1952; died 2018) |
Children | 1 |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Niko Tinbergen |
Desmond John Morris
Early life and education
Morris was born in Purton, Wiltshire, to Marjorie (née Hunt) and children's fiction author Harry Morris. In 1933, the Morrises moved to Swindon where Desmond developed an interest in natural history and writing. He was educated at Dauntsey's School, a boarding school in Wiltshire.[1]
In 1946, Morris joined the
Career
Morris stayed at Oxford, researching the reproductive behaviour of birds. In 1956 he moved to London as Head of the
Morris's books include
Morris is a Fellow honoris causa of the Linnean Society of London.[7]
Personal life
Morris's father suffered lung damage in World War I, and died when Morris was 14. He was not allowed to go to the funeral and said later; "It was the beginning of a lifelong hatred of the establishment. The church, the government and the military were all on my hate list and have remained there ever since."[8] His grandfather William Morris, an enthusiastic Victorian naturalist and founder of the Swindon local newspaper,[1] greatly influenced him during his time living in Swindon.
In July 1952, Morris married Ramona Baulch; they had one son, Jason.
Morris lived in the same house in North Oxford as the 19th-century lexicographer James Murray who worked on the Oxford English Dictionary.[10] He has exhibited at the Taurus Gallery in North Parade, Oxford, close to where he lived.[11] He is the patron of the Friends of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery and gave a talk to launch the charity in 1993.[12] Since the death of his wife in 2018 he has lived with his son and family in Ireland.[13]
Bibliography
Books
- The Biology of Art: a Study of the Picture-making Behaviour of the Great Apes and Its Relationship to Human Art. Knopf. 1963.
- The Big Cats (1965) – part of The Bodley Head Natural Science Picture Books, looking at the habits of the five Big Cats.[14]
- The Mammals: A Guide to the Living Species (1965) – a listing of mammal genera, non-rodent non-bat species, and additional information on select species.
- Men and Pandas (1966) with Ramona Morris – third volume in the Ramona and Desmond Morris animal series.
- The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal. New York: McGraw-Hill. 1967. – a look at the humanity's animalistic qualities and its similarity with other apes. In 2011, Time magazine placed it on its list of the 100 best or most influential non-fiction books written in English since 1923.[15]
- Men and Snakes (1968) with Ramona Morris – an exploration of the various complex relationships between humans and snakes
- The Human Zoo (1969) – a continuation of The Naked Ape, analysing human behaviour in big modern societies and their resemblance to animal behaviour in captivity.
- Patterns of Reproductive Behavior (1970)
- Intimate Behaviour (1971) – A study of the human side of intimate behaviour, examining how natural selection shaped human physical contact.
- Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behaviour (1978) – includes discussion of topic "Tie Signs"
- Gestures: Their Origin and Distribution (1979)
- Animal Days (1979)
- The Soccer Tribe (1981)
- Pocket Guide to Manwatching (1982)
- Inrock (1983)
- Bodywatching – A Field Guide to the Human Species (1985)
- The Book of Ages: Who Did What When (1985)
- The Art of Ancient Cyprus (1985)
- Catwatching and Cat Lore (1986)
- Dogwatching (1986)
- Horsewatching (1989)
- Animalwatching (1990)
- Babywatching (1991)
- Christmas Watching (1992)
- Bodytalk (1994)
- The Human Animal (1994) – book and BBC documentary TV series
- The Human Sexes (1997) – Discovery/BBC documentary TV series
- Cat World: A Feline Encyclopedia (1997)
- The Secret Surrealist: The Paintings of Desmond Morris (1999)
- Body Guards: Protective Amulets and Charms (1999)
- The Naked Eye (2001)
- Dogs: The Ultimate Dictionary of over 1,000 Dog Breeds (2001)
- Peoplewatching: The Desmond Morris Guide to Body Language (2002)
- The Naked Woman: A Study of the Female Body (2004)
- Linguaggio muto (Dumb Language) (2004)
- The Nature of Happiness (2004)
- Watching (2006) – autobiography
- Fantastic Cats (2007)
- The Naked Man: A Study of the Male Body (2008)
- Baby: A Portrait of the First Two Years of Life (2008)
- Planet Ape (2009) (co-authored with [Steve Parker])
- Owl (2009) – Part of the Reaktion Books Animal series
- The Artistic Ape (2013)
- Monkey (2013) – Part of the Reaktion Books Animal series
- Leopard (2014) – Part of the Reaktion Books Animal series
- Bison (2015) – Part of the Reaktion Books Animal series
- Cats in Art (2017) – Part of the Reaktion Books Animal series
- The Lives of the Surrealists (2018)
- Postures: Body Language in Art (2019)
- The British Surrealists (2022)
Book reviews
Year | Review article | Work(s) reviewed |
---|---|---|
1994 | "CATS". The New York Review of Books. 41 (18): 16–17. 3 November 1994. | ISBN 978-0671799656 .
|
Filmography
- Zootime (Weekly, 1956–67)
- Life (1965–67)
- The Human Race (1982)
- The Animals Roadshow (1987–89)
- The Animal Contract (1989)
- Animal Country (1991–96)
- The Human Animal (1994)
- The Human Sexes (1997)
Criticism
Some of Morris's theories have been criticized as untestable. For instance, geneticist Adam Rutherford writes that Morris commits "the scientific sin of the 'just-so' story – speculation that sounds appealing but cannot be tested or is devoid of evidence".[16] However, this is also a criticism of adaptationism in evolutionary biology, not just of Morris.
Morris is also criticized for suggesting that gender roles have an evolutionary rather than a purely cultural background.[17]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Williams, D. "Desmond Morris Biography". Desmond-morris.com. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
- ^ a b Dunbar, Robin (24 September 2017). "The Naked Ape at 50". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 November 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
- ^ Morris 1967.
- Harré, R.(2006). "Chapter 5: The Biopsychologists". Key Thinkers in Psychology, pp. 125–132. London: Sage.
- ^ "Desmond Morris". Social Issues Research Centre. Archived from the original on 8 December 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
- ^ National Life Stories, 'Morris, Desmond (1 of 2) National Life Stories Collection: Science and Religion', The British Library Board, 2015 Archived 18 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 9 October 2017
- ^ "Royal Patrons and Honorary Fellows". The Linnean Society.
- ^ Douglas, Alice (1 November 2008). "My family values: Desmond Morris interview". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
- ^ "The history of the United Badge". Retrieved 5 July 2023.
- ^ Moss, Stephen (18 December 2007). "We'd be better off if women ran everything". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 December 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
- ^ "Taurus Gallery". Archived from the original on 2 December 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
- ^ Administrator. "Get Involved". www.swindonmuseumandartgallery.org.uk. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
- ^ Mulcahy, Miriam (4 April 2020). "Desmond Morris on the Irish". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 4 April 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
- ^ The Big Cats ... Illustrated by Barry Driscoll. Bodley Head Natural Science Picture Books. The British Library Board. 1965. Archived from the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
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ignored (help) - from the original on 2 April 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
- ^ Rutherford 2019, p. 71.
- ^ Moss, Stephen (18 December 2007). "'We'd be better off if women ran everything'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 December 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
- Rutherford, Adam (2019). Humanimal: How Homo sapiens Became Nature's Most Paradoxical Creature – A New Evolutionary History. The Experiment. ISBN 978-1615195312. Archivedfrom the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
External links
- Official website including a complete biography
- Desmond Morris at IMDb
- Dinjet il-Qattus/Catlore by Desmond Morris, translated into Maltese by Toni Aquilina, D es Litt.
- Portraits of Desmond Morris at the National Portrait Gallery, London