| On Aggression | Hardcoverby Konrad Lonrenz (Author)
| List Price: | $71.25 | | | Available: | Usually ships in 7 to 9 days |
| | Binding: | Hardcover | | Publisher: | Routledge | | Edition: | 2nd Edition | | Page Count: | 304 Pages | | Publication Date: | October 21, 1996 | | Sales Rank: | 620,781th |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
First published in the 1960s, On Aggression has been the target of criticism and controversy ever since. It is not Lorenz's careful descriptions of animal behaviour that are contentious, but his extrapolations to the human world that have caused reverberations resulting in a statement adopted by UNESCO in 1989 and subsequently endorsed by the American Psychological Association that appears to condemn his work. But does On Aggression actually make the claims implicit in the Seville statement?In a new introduction by Professor Eric Salzen, the debate about Lorenz's work is set in its social and political context and his claims and those of his critics reassessed. Human aggression has not lessened since this seminal work first appeared and there are no convincing new solutions. On Aggression should be read by all new students and re-read by more experienced scholars so that the important evidence he presents from ethnology may be reappraised in the light of the most recent research. |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 14 reviews)
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Extremely Well Written and Original Work of Famous Scientist by Irene Riz  5 Stars
January 10, 2009
On Aggression (Routledge Classics)
The book gives you an interesting and convincing explanation of the origin of aggression in humans. The same as Darwin's theory of human origin, it is not flattering. Therefore it was not taken well initially. As far as I know there is no other constructive explanation.
Understanding animal behavior can help understanding humans because some of the basic rules of operation still apply. Author illustrates his hypothesis with multiple very interesting examples of animal and human behavior. If you want to find a way of understanding and accepting us the way we are or simply looking for fun reading or for a hope for humanity, it is a good place to start the quest.
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Some what disappointed. by Elisa Jacobs  2 Stars
November 16, 2008
Of all the products I have ever ordered from Amazon in the past 3 years this took the longest to arrive. It was a textbook I needed for a class and did not arrive till after the reading assignment of this entire book was due. Previous orders for textbooks, health products, food, anything have arrived within 3-6 days or less. This book did not.
I was also unhappy with the condition of the book. The front cover was damaged. I have never received a used or new book in poor condition. The condition of this book was not what I expected.
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Important Work by C. Primak  4 Stars
August 06, 2008
As much as this book has diminished in scientific importance of the many years since it was first published, it has gained as much, if not more, importance as a historical work. Even though this field has passed up the originator his work still stands as monument of scientific achievement.
The strange aspect of science is the fact that many times the most important scientists in any given field are those that failed. It is these men and women who have done the laborious field work plus the countless hours sifting through and analyzing data to come up with sound conclusions. Well I don't think with Konrad Lorenz's achievements anyone would call him a failure, but even though many of his conclusions have become antiquated it was his work that created the foundation for all those who have come after this giant. His work advanced this his field by decades.
So in the end, don't read Konrad Lorenz to understand the world and ethology as it stands today, but instead to understand how we came to this point of achievement now. Read this book to understand the history of this field of science and research, and to understand where and how it came about. This man was a pioneer, and without his tireless effort and devotion our understanding of our environment and ourselves would years behind. This is an important work that still needs to be read.
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Lorenz was wrong by Carlos (Spain)  3 Stars
April 05, 2008
Konrad Lorenz proposed in "On Aggression" the theory that the violence is something good and necessary for all the animals. Unfortunately, Lorenz had a big knowledge about animals, but he didn't have the same wisdom about human behavior. Erich Fromm, in his great book "The anatomy of Human Destructiveness", made a total critique of the theories that Lorenz proposed in"On Aggression". And, no doubt, From was right and Lorenz was wrong.
Fromm realized that Lorenz didn't see that in the humans there are two different types of aggression, no only one. The first type has, like in the animals, the objective of the auto-defense. But, he second type has the objective of the destruction. The violence of the Hitler and the nazis wasn't defensive, was destructive, egomaniac and evildoer. Lorenz only was conscious of the first type, but never saw the second, evil, type. The human violence is more complicated than Lorenz thought. It is impossible understand this theme only studying ducks and rats. To understand the human behavior it's necessary study history, psychology and religion, as Fromm did.
If you are interested in the human violence you must read two great books of Erich Fromm: "Escape from Freedom" and "Anatomy of Human Destructiveness".
Richard Dawkins is another writer who, in his book "The Selfish Gene", has made critics to Lorenz's positive vision of violence postulated in "On Aggression".
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vast amount of thinking and experience went into it by Paul J. Fitzgerald 5 Stars
November 30, 2007
A lifetime of thinking, research, and observation clearly went into creating this marvelous book. I like it when someone clearly cares about what he's doing, engrosses himself in his work, possibly to the point of obsession. This may well describe Lorenz and this classic book, who defends Darwin and to some degree Freud, among others. Not just about his first hand observations of animals and his interpretation of their behavior, the book extends its scope to include philosophy and history, especially the evolutionary underpinnings of human history. It is rich in detail and very well written. A must read for anyone who cares about the past and future of living things on this planet. Author of Adjust Your Brain: A Practical Theory for Maximizing Mental Health.
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SIMILAR PRODUCTS |
| King Solomon's Ring: New Light on Animal Ways (Routledge Classics)
by Konrad Lorenz (Author)
A delightful treasury of observations and insights into the lives of all sorts of creatures -- from jackdaws and water-shrews to dogs, cats and even wolves -- this is a wonderfully written introduction to the world of our furred and feathered friends!
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| Behind The Mirror: A Search for a Natural History of Human Knowledge
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Lorenz examines the nature of human thought and intelligence and attributes the problems of modern civilization largely to the limitations.
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| Man Meets Dog (Kodansha Globe)
by Konrad Lorenz (Author), Marjorie Kerr Wilson (Translator)
A new edition of a classic work by a Nobel Laureate in animal behavior features delightful line drawings as it explores with humor and wisdom the world of dogs, investigating the intricacies of how they relate to humans and cats. Reprint.
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| The Natural Science of the Human Species: An Introduction to Comparative Behavioral Research: The
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edited from the author's posthumous works by Agnes von Cranach translated by Robert D. Martin Here Am I Where Are You?: The Behavior of the Greylag Goose was thought to be Konrad Lorenz's last book. However, in 1991 the "Russian Manuscript" was discovered in an attic, and its subsequent publication in German has become a scientific sensation. Written under the most extreme conditions in Soviet prison camps, the "Russian Manuscript" was the first outline of a large-scale work on...
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| On Human Nature: Revised Edition
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"In his new preface E. O. Wilson reflects on how he came to write this book: how The Insect Societies led him to write Sociobiology, and how the political and religious uproar that engulfed that book persuaded him to write another book that would better explain the relevance of biology to the understanding of human behavior."
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