Description
Book SynopsisMen and women became experts at influencing one another to achieve their cooperative ends, but also became trapped in strategies of manipulation and deception in pursuit of sex and partnership. Drawing on biology, sociology, anthropology, and economics, this book shows that conflict between the sexes is, paradoxically, the product of cooperation.
Trade ReviewOne of Financial Times (FT.com) Best Economics Books of 2013 "[A] witty, informative and cogent new book."--Jonathan Ree, Guardian "Seabright zooms out and across history in an accessible mix of scholarly prose and chatty anecdote to explain why inequalities and disagreements persist beyond potty-training... Turning to today, Seabright investigates everything from the effects of technology on gender-bias, to the various benefits of tallness, talent, and charm in the workplace."--PublishersWeekly.com "Throughout the book, Seabright is terrific company--entertaining and convincing."--John Whitfield, Nature "Right off the bat, I can say that this book should not be collecting dust on your shelf... [I]s War of the Sexes a challenging and interesting read? Undoubtedly so."--Sander Van Der Linden, LSE Politics and Policy blog "The War of the Sexes is a fascinating read. I love its interdisciplinarity."--Diane Coyle, The Enlightened Economist "Seabright, an economist familiar with evolutionary modelling, synthesises several disciplines in asking what our evolutionary heritage teaches us about men's and women's rights and roles in the modern labour market. Judicious in bringing Darwinism to bear on contemporary mores, he avoids the vulgar reductionism that often plagues this kind of popular science."--Camilla Power, Times Higher Education "Seabright is unusual among economists in being a thoroughgoing Darwinian, and in this fascinating book he takes an evolutionary perspective to explore why there are still inequalities in economic power between men and women."--Jon Wainwright, Skeptic
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Part One Prehistory Chapter 1: Introduction 3 Chapter 2: Sex and Salesmanship 27 Chapter 3: Seduction and the Emotions 40 Chapter 4: Social Primates 60 Part Two Today Chapter 5: Testing for Talent 93 Chapter 6: What Do Women Want? 111 Chapter 7: Coalitions of the Willing 126 Chapter 8: The Scarcity of Charm 141 Chapter 9: The Tender War 157 Notes 183 References 211 Index 233
