Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray by Christopher Ryan & Cacilda Jethá - Non Fiction - Paperback

Details:. Condition: BRAND NEW. Format: Paperback. ISBN: 9780061707810. Publisher: Harper Perennial. Overview:. Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern Relationships is a bold, myth-busting exploration of human sexual evolution. Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethá challenge the standard narrative that humans are naturally monogamous, drawing on anthropology, primatology, and archaeology. Written for curious general readers, this accessible and provocative paperback blends rigorous research with engaging storytelling, inviting readers to rethink everything they assumed about desire, fidelity, and the origins of modern romantic relationships.. About the Book:. Sex at Dawn overturns the popular assumption that lifelong sexual monogamy is our species' natural state. Instead, Ryan and Jethá argue that early humans lived in cooperative, egalitarian groups where food, childcare, and sexual partners were often shared. Drawing on evidence from primatology, anthropology, anatomy, and psychology, the authors compare our closest evolutionary relatives - bonobos and chimpanzees - alongside surviving hunter-gatherer societies to build a compelling, if controversial, case for a far more fluid prehistoric sexuality than most people assume. The book traces how agriculture, private property, and paternity certainty reshaped human mating systems, giving rise to the possessive, jealousy-prone monogamy many now consider natural. Along the way, the authors tackle topics such as female sexuality, the size and shape of human genitals as evolutionary evidence, sperm competition, and the disconnect between the sexual instincts encoded by evolution and the social expectations imposed by modern marriage. Rather than prescribing a single lifestyle, Sex at Dawn encourages readers to understand the evolutionary pressures underlying jealousy, infidelity, and desire so they can build more honest, self-aware relationships. Combining hard science with wit and readability,