Why We Hate by Jr., Rush Dozier

by Rush W. Dozier Jr.

"In the post-9/11 struggle for a sane global vision, this antihatred manifesto could not be more timely."-- The Oprah Magazine In this acclaimed volume, Pulitzer-Prize nominated science writer Rush W. Dozier Jr. demystifies our deadliest emotion--hate. Based on the most recent scientific research in a range of fields, from anthropology to zoology, Why We Hate explains the origins and manifestations of this toxic emotion and offers realistic but hopeful suggestions for defusing it. The strategies offered here can be used in both everyday life to improve relationships with family and friends as well as globally in our efforts to heal the hatreds that fester within and among nations of the world.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Science

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Franco Zappavigna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant. This book should be read by everyone at some point in their lives, preferably sooner rather than later. As a science graduate and someone who has an interest in sociology, I enjoyed the important links Dozier identified between the biochemistry and neuroanatomy of the brain and how this impacts on expression and feelings in different contexts. Very well written.

[Eashah Raees · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book

[Lisa Cromwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an eye opening and informative read. I truly believe that everyone should read this book at some point in their lives! The way this author breaks down the information keeps you interested. Yes, it was a heavy read. But I enjoyed it. I loved learning about how the brain plays a part in different emotions. And how the environment you grow up in can have an impact on your views of "us vs them" mentality. Even something like having slight damage to certain parts of the brain can result in violent outbursts. The different levels of our brains that have developed over time with evolution....but the primal parts still exist and can influence our behaviors. I once found a video that was done as a social experiment. They interviewed some people and spoke to them about their heritage and the country they were from. Most people interviewed were very proud of their "full blooded" status and were very vocal about their dislike of the countries they were taught to have issue with. Then the experiment took another step and these people had their DNA tested. The results were not a surprise to me. It was found that not one of them were "full blooded" as they thought. Some were even found to have heritage from some of those countries they had a profound dislike/hatred for. One lady even had a cousin in the group (that she was totally unaware existed) that was from a country she was born and raised to hate. Interestingly enough, everyone in the experiment suddenly had this sheepish look on their faces and a different demeanor towards these countries they were bashing earlier. It was fascinating to see them suddenly change from the "us vs them" mentality to a "us" mentality. It was sad to see that these folks were only accepting of others after finding out that they were "others" as well. What a difference it could make in the world if we could all adopt this mentality without it having to involve a DNA experiment. We are all humans.....HUMANS......Please take time to read this book if you are reading this review...you will not be disappointed.

[Kristen McConnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting and informative, however dry at times. Much of the information about hate was given on the basis of biological reasons of hate, however, I wish it focused on much of the social causes as well.

[Yijun He]

Read this five years ago. Will read it once more.