Mothers and Others

Download or read book Mothers and Others written by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2011-04-15 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mothers and Others finds the key in the primatologically unique length of human childhood. Renowned anthropologist Sarah Hrdy argues that if human babies were to survive in a world of scarce resources, they would need to be cared for, not only by their mothers but also by siblings, aunts, fathers, friends—and, with any luck, grandmothers. Out of this complicated and contingent form of childrearing, Hrdy argues, came the human capacity for understanding others. In essence, mothers and others teach us who will care, and who will not.