Desmond Morris Quotes

Quotes about:

• The city is not a concrete jungle, it is a human zoo.

  Desmond Morris

  Funny, Zoos, Concrete Jungle

  The Human Zoo (1969) p. 8

  170 Copy quote

• ...In little more than a single century from 1820 to 19450, no less than fifty-nine million human animals were killed in inter-group clashes of one sort or another.... We describe these killings as men behaving "like animals," but if we could find a wild animal that showed signs of acting this way, it would be more precise to describe it as behaving like men.

  Desmond Morris

  Animal, Men, Acting

  46 Copy quote

• We may prefer to think of ourselves as fallen angels, but in reality we are rising apes.

  Desmond Morris

  Angel, Reality, Thinking

  Desmond Morris (1994). “The human animal: a personal view of the human species”, Crown Pub

  50 Copy quote

• It must be stressed that there is nothing insulting about looking at people as animals. We are animals, after all. Homo sapiens is a species of primate, a biological phenomenon dominated by biological rules, like any other species. Human nature is no more than one particular kind of animal nature. Agreed, the human species is an extraordinary animal; but all other species are also extraordinary animals, each in their own way, and the scientific man-watcher can bring many fresh insights to the study of human affairs if he can retain this basic attitude of evolutionary humility.

  Desmond Morris

  Attitude, Humility, Men

  Desmond Morris (1977). “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior”

  54 Copy quote

• The idea that it is funny to see wild animals coerced into acting like clumsy humans, or thrilling to see powerful beasts reduced to cringing cowards by a whip-cracking trainer, is primitive and medieval. It stems from the old idea that we are superior to other species and have the right to hold dominion over them.

  Desmond Morris

  Powerful, Animal, Ideas

  "Rose-Tinted Menagerie" by William Johnson, (p. 10), 1990.

  66 Copy quote

• Under crowded conditions the friendly social interactions between members of a group become reduced, and the destructive and aggressive patterns show a marked rise in frequency and intensity.

  Desmond Morris

  Friendly, Groups, Crowds

  desmond morris (1967). “tha naked ape”

  39 Copy quote

• Life is like a very short visit to a toy shop between birth and death.

  Desmond Morris

  Life, Journey, Toys

  In 'Sunday Express' 3 November 1991

  44 Copy quote

• This unusual and highly successful species spends a great deal of time examining his higher motives and an equal amount of time ignoring his fundamental ones.

  Desmond Morris

  Successful, Fundamentals, Unusual

  Desmond Morris (1986). “The illustrated naked ape: a zoologist's study of the human animal”, Crown Pub

  41 Copy quote

• Biologically speaking, if something bites you it's more likely to be female.

  Desmond Morris

  Funny, Science, Talking

  42 Copy quote

• People who keep dogs live longer on average than those who do not. This is not some kind of pro-canine campaigning fantasy. It is a simple medical fact that the calming influence of the company of a friendly pet animal reduces blood pressure and therefore
  the risk of heart attack.

  Desmond Morris

  Friendship, Dog, Heart

  39 Copy quote

• We never stop investigating. We are never satisfied that we know enough to get by. Every question we answer leads on to another question. This has become the greatest survival trick of our species.

  Desmond Morris

  Survival, Answers, Enough

  Desmond Morris (1986). “The illustrated naked ape: a zoologist's study of the human animal”, Crown Pub

  17 Copy quote

• Monks, nuns, long-term spinsters and bachelors and permanent homosexuals are all, in a reproductive sense, aberrant. Society has bred them, but they have failed to return the compliment.

  Desmond Morris

  Long, Return, Compliment

  desmond morris (1967). “tha naked ape”

  25 Copy quote

• We read off the many signals that our companions' clothes transmit to us in every social encounter. In this way, clothing is as much a part of human body language as gestures, facial expressions and postures.Even those people who insist that they despise attention to clothing, and dress as casually as possible, are making quite specific comments on their social roles and their attitudes towards the culture in which they live.

  Desmond Morris

  Fashion, Attitude, Clothes

  28 Copy quote

• We are to put it mildly, in a mess, and there is a strong chance that we shall have exterminated ourselves by the end of the century. Our only consolation will be that as a species, we have had an exciting term of office.

  Desmond Morris

  Strong, Office, World

  Desmond Morris (1967). “The Naked Ape”

  34 Copy quote

• In a social environment that is ever crowded and impersonal, it is becoming increasingly important to reconsider the value of close personal relationships before we are driven to ask the forlorn question, 'Whatever happened to love?'

  Desmond Morris

  Important, Becoming, Environment

  28 Copy quote

• There are one hundred and ninety-three living species of monkeys and apes. One hundred and ninety-two of them are covered with hair. The exception is a naked ape self-named Homo sapiens. The zoologist now has to start making comparisons. Where else is nudity at a premium.

  Desmond Morris

  Hair, Self, Two

  The Naked Ape introduction (1967)

  23 Copy quote

• Aquatic animals suffer from the disadvantage that they cannot scream when in pain, so we find it hard to gauge the degree of their agony. If fish could scream, angling purely for sport would be outlawed without delay.

  Desmond Morris

  Sports, Pain, Animal

  16 Copy quote

• Artists like cats; soldiers like dogs.

  Desmond Morris

  Dog, Cat, Artist

  Desmond Morris (1987). “Cat Watching”, Crown Pub

  16 Copy quote

• The female covers her breasts, and then proceeds to redefine their shape with a brassiere. This sexual signaling device may be padded or inflatable, so that it not only reinstates the concealed shape, but also enlarges it, imitating in this way the breast swelling that occurs during sexual arousal.

  Desmond Morris

  Arousal, Female, Shapes

  Desmond Morris (1986). “The illustrated naked ape: a zoologist's study of the human animal”, Crown Pub

  13 Copy quote

• I viewed my fellow man not as a fallen angel, but as a risen ape.

  Desmond Morris

  Angel, Men, Fellow Man

  18 Copy quote

• A true bond of friendship is usually only possible between people of roughly equal status. This equality is demonstrated in many indirect ways, but it is reinforced in face-to-face encounters by a matching of the posture of relaxation or alertness.

  Desmond Morris

  Friendship, People, Relaxation

  Desmond Morris (1977). “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior”

  18 Copy quote

• There is nothing biologically unusual about a homosexual act of pseudocopulation. Many species indulge in this, under a variety of circumstances.

  Desmond Morris

  Indulge In, Unusual, Homosexuality

  Desmond Morris (1986). “The illustrated naked ape: a zoologist's study of the human animal”, Crown Pub

  5 Copy quote

• The age of a child is inversely correlated with the size of the animals it prefers.

  Desmond Morris

  Children, Animal, Age

  desmond morris (1967). “tha naked ape”

  12 Copy quote

• The roots of our Soccer Tribe lie deep in our primeval past.

  Desmond Morris

  Soccer, Lying, Past

  10 Copy quote

• No matter how old we become, we can still call them 'Holy Mother' and 'Father' and put a child-like trust in them.

  Desmond Morris

  Faith, Mother, Children

  Desmond Morris (1977). “Manwatching: A Field Guide to Human Behavior”

  12 Copy quote

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