Human nature and history : a response to sociobiology /

From his eloquent defense of historical processes as movers and shapers of mankind, one would assume that Bock was either a historian or a philosopher of history. He is, however, a sociologist (Univ. of California, Berkeley)--who here adds yet another voice to the swelling chorus opposed to sociobiology. His point is that sociobiologists have overlooked cultural differences in their desires to find an overall explanation for human behavior (namely, behavioral genes). In rebuttal, he adduces a distinguished line of thinkers--from Hume through Theodor Waltz, Frederick Teggart, Robert Park, Ortega y Gasset, Toynbee, and the contemporary Alexander Alland--who have sought answers to the question of cultural diversity in terms of history, not in terms of human nature. Whether cultural change comes about through contact or conflict, through catastrophe or through the work of extraordinary individuals, is inconsequential; the point is that change does occur and is often radical, producing differences in behavior in one or two generations that have little to do with biological processes or natural selection. But among sociobiologists, Bock notes, cultural differences are either dismissed as fortuitous or explained away as trivial. His line or argument is not new, as he acknowledges, but he has carefully marshaled his material and presents a well-developed thesis through chapters that review the many earlier positions on the nature of human nature--which, oftener than not, regarded man as an animal, and a debased one at that. (In one choice paragraph, St. Augustine and E. O. Wilson emerge as brothers under the skin.) Bock also points out the shortcomings of ethological comparisons and, following Lewontin, reminds us that no behavioral gene has as yet surfaced. On the other hand, Bock may be accused of going too far the other way, stating that man makes himself; that history makes human nature. He also takes the idea of civilization as given, never discussing the meanings of ""savage"" or ""primitive."" Withal, a worthy addition to the five-foot-shelf on sociobiology, pro and con. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.