Chimpanzee and Bonobo

Paper details:

As we see from the week’s readings and videos, Chimpanzee (Pan Troglodytes) and Bonobo (Pan Paniscus) lead very different social and political lives. Whereas Chimpanzee society is characterized by violent dominance hierarchies and patriarchy, Bonobos live in social arrangements characterized as “female-centered, peace-loving, and egalitarian” (Kottak 2011: 148). These species are nearly identical in both their genetic makeup and appearance. It is therefore not possible to explain their radically different social behaviors as being of genetic or biological origin.

If genes can’t account for the different social tendencies of Bonobo and Chimpanzee, what might explain this incredible difference in behavior? Keep in mind that Bonobo developed in a fairly isolated region, where they still live today, and Chimpanzee had a much wider dispersion.

What might the differences in social behavior exhibited by Bonobo and Chimpanzee mean for humans? What are the implications of what you have read this week for human political possibility? For the possibility of living in non-violent or egalitarian societies? For human nature more broadly?

What might Bonobo sexual activity tell us about human sexuality and our notions that most people inherently possess static (hetero or homo) sexualities?