Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals

The definitive edition of Darwin’s classic – a brilliantly entertaining and accessible exploration of human and animal behaviour, reissued to mark the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth. Why do we bite people we feel affection towards? Why do dogs wag their tails? Or cats purr? Why do we get embarrassed, and why does embarrassment make us blush? These and many other questions about the emotional life of man and animals are answered in this remarkable book. Expression is the only book in which Darwin sketches out his revolutionary ideas about human behaviour in detail: he discusses childhood learning, insanity, painting and sculpture, animal behaviour and the differences in facial expression of the world’s peoples.

‘This is Darwin’s most readable and human book, full of enchanting observations, provocative theories and remarkable photographs. This splendid new edition of Expression will introduce a new generation of readers to Darwin’s masterpiece, undiminished and intensely relevant even 125 years after publication.’Oliver Sacks, author of The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat ‘The Expression of the Emotions predates Freud, and it will still be illuminating human psychology long after Freud’s discrediting is complete.’Richard Dawkins, author of The Selfish Gene and The God Delusion ‘The appearance of this new edition of Darwin’s extraordinary book is a major event in the human sciences. Here Darwin reminds us of his astonishing gifts of observation and explanation, offering insights that are delightful and fresh over a century later. Paul Ekman’s reconstruction of this edition is an act of great scholarship. Everyone interested in emotion – and who isn’t? – should be grateful to Ekman for this book.’Steven Pinker, author of The Language Instinct

Paul Ekman is Professor of Psychology (emeritus) at the Univesity of California Medical School, San Francisco. He is the author of ‘Emotional Awareness’ (co-authored with the Dalai Lama) and ‘Emotions Revealed’. He is co-editor of ‘Emotions Inside Out: 130 years After Darwin's Expression’ and ‘Telling Lies: Clues to Deceit in the Marketplace, Politics and Marriage’.