In the Shadow of Man

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1971

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-3

Chapters 4-6

Chapters 7-9

Chapters 10-12

Chapters 13-15

Chapters 16-18

Chapters 19-21

Key Figures

Themes

Index of Terms

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Chapters 19-21Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 19 Summary: “In the Shadow of Man”

Goodall analyzes the many similarities—as well as crucial differences—between humans and chimps. Chimps’ brain structure is similar to that of humans, and they therefore likely have a brain similar to that of our shared ancestor. They have an ability to reason and to create and use tools. Goodall explains that tool use in itself doesn’t necessarily signify high intelligence; some bird species use twigs as tools but aren’t smarter than those who use their beaks. Goodall considers tool use significant when species can readily manipulate or redirect tools depending on the problem at hand. She reiterates that Gombe chimps use tools for many purposes. Researchers have witnessed chimps in captivity using tools like sticks, rocks, and straw for various purposes. Even when provided with tools and demonstrations, no chimp has ever figured out how to use one tool to make another. For example, a researcher modeled how to use an ax to cut sticks, but the chimps ignored the ax and used their teeth instead. Goodall considers tool making an instinct in chimps but argues that how they use tools is a learned behavior.

The author emphasizes the similarities between human and chimp body language and gestures. Both humans and chimps seek physical contact with a companion when frightened. Goodall attributes this to the physical comfort mothers provide infants in distress, who continue to embody this instinct as adults. Goodall draws another parallel between humans and chimps who frequently smile and make submissive gestures when socializing. Goodall believes that these chimps and people are more nervous when socializing and are seeking approval from others with their submissive behavior. Goodall argues that chimps and humans have both evolved different ways of smiling, one to show happiness, and another as a more submissive “nervous grin” (247).

Another similarity is how humans and chimps express joy or excitement. Like humans, chimps often pat, embrace, or kiss each other when excited. In both humans and chimps, physical affection is essential for reaffirming relationships after conflict as well. Goodall argues, however, that despite our similarities, chimps and humans may have very different reasoning for offering affection or reassurance. Unlike humans, chimps rarely show “purely altruistic feelings” (245) in their dealings with each other, but concerned chimp mothers and siblings may show altruism at times.

In chimps, grooming is the “most peaceful, most relaxing, most friendly form of physical contact” (245) and is common between relatives and friends. Social grooming sessions can last for up to two hours, and chimps of all ages make them a priority. The crouching and bowing postures that chimps use to show submission are the same ones they use when grooming each other; Goodall raises the possibility that they evolved these submissive gestures from their grooming regimen. Chimps greet each other by holding hands, patting each other on the face or genitals, kissing, bowing, or crouching; all of these behaviors exist in different human societies. Goodall argues that in both primate species, greeting gestures subconsciously clarify social status. In addition, chimp games are similar to people’s games, for example, many young chimps enjoy tickling each other. Likewise, their aggressive actions are close to humans’ actions: They may stare, raise their arms, kick, bite, pull hair, or throw things.

Significantly, chimps don’t use language, and researchers’ attempts to teach chimps language have been unsuccessful. While chimps use various calls and can recognize each other’s voices, these communications aren’t nearly as complex as humans’ spoken language. While humans can communicate complex and abstract ideas, we tend to combine our most heartfelt words with body language such as patting, embracing, or holding hands. Goodall explains that American researchers Allen and Beatrix Gardner successfully taught a captive chimp, Washoe, how to use over 350 signs from sign language. Goodall argues that Washoe’s success at signing shows chimps’ ability to learn how to communicate about different objects. Her ability to identify herself in a mirror by signing her own name shows some basic self-awareness as well. Goodall argues that a chimp’s sense of self differs from a human’s since chimps can’t build on a sense of self to investigate the world around them or experience human pursuits such as dying for an ideal, appreciating beauty, or loving someone unselfishly.

Goodall concludes the chapter by reasserting that people do “overshadow” the chimps but that chimps “overshadow” all other animals with their social structures, intelligence, communication and tools. Goodall urges others to sympathize with chimps and lobby for their survival as a species, writing, “Who knows what the chimpanzee will be like forty million years hence? It should be of concern to us all that we permit him to live, that we at least give him the chance to evolve” (252).

Chapter 20 Summary: “Man’s Inhumanity”

Goodall explores how human activities threaten chimp groups. One lethal threat to chimps is being hunted for meat by communities in Western or Central Africa. Another is being killed or captured by medical research labs, which take chimps into captivity for medical experiments. Goodall condemns these practices as tragedies and laments how many chimps have lost their lives in such ways, estimating that six chimps likely die for each one captured alive. Another increasing threat to chimps is human agriculture and settlement, which ruin chimp habitats and expose them to human disease epidemics.

The author praises the East African countries Uganda and Tanzania for protecting the chimpanzee by law, and she’s hopeful that chimps can be successfully bred in captivity so that people don’t disturb wild populations. Goodall explains that, in most captive situations, zoo chimps have few outlets for their many skills and instincts, and as a result zookeepers and researchers have little idea of what a chimp really is. She compares cramped, sparse zoo enclosures to prisons and sympathizes with the suffering that captive chimps experience.

Chimps and humans share 99% of their genetic material—and chimps are more closely related to humans than they are to another African great ape, gorillas. Rather than bestowing more rights to chimps, however, these similarities make them more sought-after for medical experiments. Goodall hopes that in the future humans find ways to experiment with treatments that don’t depend on living animals at all, but until then she argues that chimps deserve much better living conditions. She points out that in the US, cage sizes are dependent on body size, and most captive chimps are caged separately in five-by-five-foot cages. The most active chimps, infants and juveniles, are confined to the smallest cages. Goodall insists that chimps should be treated as an “honored guest” in laboratories and should be able to live with their companions and enjoy stimulating environments and good food.

Chapter 21 Summary: “Family Postscript”

In her final chapter, Goodall provides a family update written in August 1970. She promises that her research at Gombe will provide a better understanding about the human species, and she’s personally curious to see how the Gombe chimps’ relationships and personalities continue to play out. She reveals that she now spends less time researching at Gombe since she has her own son to take care of. Goodall and van Lawick balanced parenting with observing the chimps, and they kept their son in a secure enclosure at Gombe because the chimps would have hunted him if they’d the chance. Because van Lawick was interested in studying larger game animals, Goodall joined him for some of his work and observed hyenas in the wild. Goodall is grateful that her research students continue to document the Gombe chimps in her absence so that she can closely follow the continuing “chimpanzee saga.”

The author concludes her work by providing an update on the chimp “characters” she discussed in the book. After having a stillborn baby, elderly Olly passed away, leaving her offspring Gilka to fend for herself. Gilka developed a fungal infection that swelled her nose horribly. With the help of veterinarians, Goodall identified the disease and treated it with antibiotics. Gilka and her brother Evered continue to share a close relationship. Melissa’s offspring Miff had her own infant at age 11 and proved a very capable mother. Interested in close sibling bonds, Goodall’s team tracked brothers Faben and Figan and found that they became less affectionate during adolescence and then began to show more aggression toward each other. Goodall admits that this development has made her question her theory about male siblings developing close friendships. Goodall relates how Faben, Figan and Evered engaged in a spectacular battle which scarred some of them for life. The researchers at Gombe continued to study male dominance and found that Humphrey had grown in both physical size and dominance, but Mike was still superior to him. Because Figan ignored Mike’s displays and didn’t make any submissive gestures, Mike was often aggressive toward him. Eventually, Figan submitted to Mike’s authority, but then Evered tried the same challenging tactics toward Mike. Strangely, if either Figan or Evered conquered Mike, they wouldn’t be the dominant male, since Humphrey is above their status. Goodall anticipates that Figan will one day be the most dominant since he’s very intelligent and has the support of a large family. Goliath, the former dominant male, has declined in health and status and spends most of his time alone after losing his friend David Graybeard to the flu.

Goodall grieved the loss of David Graybeard, the first chimp to accept her presence. She credits him with helping her develop her early relationships with chimps and her understanding of them. While Goodall regrets playing with other chimps, she doesn’t regret her close friendship with David Graybeard. She recalls a profound moment when she offered him a nut, but he ignored it and held her hand instead.

Chapters 19-21 Analysis

In the final chapters, Goodall channels her knowledge and sympathy for chimps into direct pleas for their welfare. Her descriptions of wild chimps falling victim to poachers and the bushmeat trade rouse emotions and portray the hunting of chimps as a tragedy. She writes, “In many areas chimpanzee flesh is a much prized delicacy and there are horrifying tales of infant chimps tied up beside the sliced-up bodies of their mothers in the meat market, on sale for fattening and future consumption…” (253). Goodall offers a balanced view on cruelty to chimps by condemning the suffering they experience in zoos and labs as well. She uses her vivid prose to highlight the stress and discomfort they experience by contrasting the “confined space” and “concrete” of captivity with the “soft ground” and “sun-ripened fruit in a cool forest tree” (256) they enjoy in their wilderness habitats. The author again defends her study’s value by arguing that when people recognize chimps’ skills and intelligence, and see how they live in the wild, they’re more likely to gain sympathy for this species and treat them humanely. She shares, “Sometimes I feel that the only way in which we might affect an improvement in the condition of most laboratory chimpanzees would be to take those responsible for their upkeep to see the chimpanzees of Gombe” (257).

This discussion about “man’s inhumanity” helps Goodall explore the consequences chimps face because they live in humans’ “shadow” as a species. Goodall’s analysis asks others to consider the world from the chimp’s point of view and argues that humans should have a more ethical approach to interacting with other species, especially chimps. Goodall emphasizes people’s thoughtless cruelty toward chimps in labs: “These conditions are worse than those in which, today, we imprison the most hardened of criminals” (257). In discussing the abusive conditions, Goodall explores the irony that humans need to study chimps because of our species’ similarities—but neglect to honor their sentience and intelligence in their captive conditions. Goodall points out that humans and chimps’ similarities “raise a serious ethical question: are we justified in using an animal so close to us—an animal, moreover, that is highly endangered in its African forest home—as a human substitute in medical experimentation?” (257). The author’s description of chimps suffering in captivity indicates that these studies are justifiable only if the chimps can enjoy their lives in captive enclosures.