Peacemaking among primates

309 Pages·1989·12.54 MB·English

by  F B M de Waal

Peacemaking
among
Primates
[To view this image, refer to
the print version of this title.]
Peacemaking
among
Primates
Frans de Waal
Harvard University Press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, England
Copyright©1989byFransB. M. deWaal
Allrightsreserved
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Sixthprinting,2002
FirstHarvard UniversityPress
paperbackedition, 1990
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-Publication Data
Waal, F. B. M. de(FransB. M.), 1948
Peacemakingamongprimates.
Bibliography: p.
Includesindex.
1. Primates-Behavior. 2. Reconciliationinanimals.
1. Title.
QL737.P9W28 1989 599.8'0451 88-11067
ISBN0-674-65920-1 (alk. paper)(cloth)
ISBN0-674-65921-X(paper)
For my parents, my five brothers,
and Catherine-with all ofwhom
I have had countless reconciliations

Contents
Acknowledgments
IX
Prologue 1
1 False Dichotomies 9
"Good" Aggression 10
"Bad" Peace 18
The Individual and the Group 23
Captive vs. Field Studies 27
2 Chimpanzees 35
The Arnhem Project 36
Reconciliation and Consolation 37
Sex Differences 48
A Coalition Breaks 57
Deadly Violence 61
Reflections on the Dark Side 69
Self-Awareness and Chimpocentrism 78
3 Rhesus Monkeys 89
Matriarchs and Matrilines 89
The Transfer of Rank 93
Aggression Levels 95
The Exploratory Phase 105
Implicit Reconciliations 110
Hard Evidence 117
Class Structure 122
Climbing the Ladder 127
4 Stump-Tailed Monkeys 143
Our Beauties 145
Orgasmic Reconciliations 149
Two Macaques 154
All-Embracing Unity 163
viii CONTENTS
5 Bonobos 171
The "Pygmy Chimp" Is Neither 174
Wild Bonobos and Wild Theories 178
The Smartest Ape? 186
The Peanut Family 189
Games Bonobos Play 193
Kama Sutra Primates 198
The Sex-Contract Hypothesis 206
Sex for Peace 214
Epilogue 222
6 Humans 229
The Paucity of Knowledge 231
Degrees of Sophistication 237
Conditions of Peace 243
Children 249
Cultures 257
The Oath of the Elbe 264
Conclusion 269
Bibliography 273
Index 287
Acknowledgments
In1975, undertheauspicesoftheUniversityofUtrecht, Ibegan
a postdoctoral study of the unique chimpanzee colony at
Arnhem Zoo in the Netherlands. I am most grateful to Jan van
Hooff, professor of animal behavior, who gave me abundant
advice and encouragement and with whom I discussed every
new observation. I supervised an average of four graduate
students per year, a total of twenty-three individuals. Special
thanks are due the students who helped to document the dra
matic events that occurred in 1980~Fredvan Eeuwijk, Tine
Griede, Marion van de Klashorst, and Gerard Willemsen-and
the animal caretakers-Jacky Hommes, Loes Offermans, and
Monika ten Tuynte. I am greatly indebted to the Arnhem Zoo
and to its director, Anton van Hooff, for allowing me to work
with the chimpanzee colony there. The fact thatJanand Anton
van Hooff are brothers obviously facilitated cooperation be
tween zoo and university. My study was financially supported
by the University of Utrecht's Research Pool and by the Dutch
Organization for the Advancement of Pure Research.
Onedayinthefallof1981RobertGoy, directorofthe Wiscon
sin Regional Primate Research Center of the University ofWis
consin, welcomed me at the Madison airport for what was
intended as a one-year stay. I am extremely grateful for his
supportand appreciation ofmy work, and for the warm hospi
talityextendedbyhimand hiswife, Barbara. SevenyearslaterI
am still workingat the center, which offered mea staffposition
to study the behavior of group-living monkeys. My assistant,
Lesleigh Luttrell, has become indispensable by virtue of her
efficiency, reliability, and commitment to our scientific objec
tives. She observes the monkeys ona dailybasis, maintains the
computer records, and shares with me the joy offollowing the
eventful lives of over one hundred individuals, whom we dis-