Violence against women : a critique of the sociobiology of rape /

This volume deals with the single issue of responses from feminist scientists to some sociobiologist arguments that rape is adaptive behavior. The book emerges from a controversy that ensued from a presentation at the 1983 American Psychological Association meeting, when Delbert Thiessen delivered a Fellows' address titled ``Rape as a reproductive strategy: our evolutionary legacy.'' Letters to and from Thiessen concerning his address and the protest organized by psychologists are included in appendixes to this collection. This material and the articles concerning it form an interesting chapter in the sociology of science; the book contains fascinating discussions about the mislabeling of animal behavior as rape, the exaggerated samples on which sociobiological theories concerning ``rape'' in animals are based, and the carryover of biological theories into social theory. The authors provide extensive documentation, clear exposition, and are convincing in their attack. Subject and author indexes and biographical sketches are provided; references are at the end of the chapters. A timely and useful contribution to courses in women's studies, sociology of science (knowledge), anthropology, and sociobiology. Public and academic libraries, upper-division undergraduate level and above.-S. Reinharz, Brandeis University