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Biology - 2002
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The Myths of Monogamy
21/07/2002
19th century author Alexandre Dumas sagely opined that "the chains of marriage are so heavy that it takes two to bear them - and sometimes three". But Dumas was no radical: it seems that monogamy has never been the norm for human societies. Or at least, that's the view of David Barash and Judith Lipton, authors of a new book entitled "The Myth of Monogamy". They argue that our evolutionary biology leans heavily in favour of multiple sexual partnerships, and that there's something distinctly unnatural about our moral predilection for one lifelong mate.
