What It Means to Be Human: Reflections from 1791 to the Present
Joanna Bourke
What It Means to Be Human: Reflections from 1791 to the Present
In 1872, a woman known only as 'An Earnest Englishwoman', published an open letter entitled 'Are women animals?' She protested that women were not treated as fully human; their status was worse than that of animals. What does it mean to be 'human' rather than 'animal'? If the Earnest Englishwoman had turned her gaze to the previous century, her critique could have applied to slaves. Exploring the legacy of more than two centuries, this book examines the ever shifting line drawn between the human and the animal.
3.5 out of 5 based on 4 reviews
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Omniscore:
|
| Classification |
Non-fiction |
| Genre |
Science & Nature |
| Format |
Hardback |
| Pages |
480 |
| RRP |
£30.00 |
| Date of Publication |
October 2011 |
| ISBN |
978-1844086443 |
| Publisher |
Virago |
| |
In 1872, a woman known only as 'An Earnest Englishwoman', published an open letter entitled 'Are women animals?' She protested that women were not treated as fully human; their status was worse than that of animals. What does it mean to be 'human' rather than 'animal'? If the Earnest Englishwoman had turned her gaze to the previous century, her critique could have applied to slaves. Exploring the legacy of more than two centuries, this book examines the ever shifting line drawn between the human and the animal.
Reviews
The Guardian
John Gray
"Moving from Kafka's talking ape Red Peter to the sexual politics of Victorian anthropology, cannibalism to cosmetic surgery, Bourke's range of reference is astonishing. The result is a book that will amaze and entrance as much as it enlightens and instructs ... Her method of analysis is a variant of deconstruction, a powerful tool in a number of contexts ... But when it denies the reality of anything that might be described as human nature, postmodernism creates a chimera of its own."
26/10/2011
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The Times
Iain Finlayson
"This is a provocative, exhilarating, sometimes exasperating book. Bourke’s intelligence is sharp, her language lively, and the cultural images striking. Her inquiry into “human” as a concept has an intellectual edge that cuts through time and topology to explore the basic, consistent “desire for community and communion, authenticity and certainty” which, she says, creates humanity."
29/10/2011
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The Times Higher Education
Sheila Rowbotham
"Bourke is impressive in demonstrating that "being human" is far more problematic than it might appear; however, her effort at resolution by asserting uniqueness and the desire for connection, while commendable, is not completely convincing. Moreover, although she asks what is to be done, her conclusion is not entirely clear. Nevertheless, What it Means to be Human is intellectually stimulating in scope, and it is a delight to read such an ambitious book."
27/10/2011
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The Observer
Philip Ball
"... Joanna Bourke's survey is not so much about the boundaries of humankind as about the way in which some humans have systematically denied full personhood to others, particularly women, children and other (generally non-European) races and cultures. She would have helped her argument by keeping that distinction clear ... Yet if the narrative is patchy, this is still more than a collection of historical curiosities. Bourke's critique of the concept of human rights opens an important debate on a complacent ideal, while her cross-examination of animal welfare should give all parties pause for thought."
08/10/2011
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