The Mismeasure of Man
New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1996.
Synopsis:
"This 'revised and expanded' {version of a book} . . . first published in 1981, contains a new introductory chapter and five new, short essays at the end. . . . {Topics include various aspects of} mental testing." (Choice) Bibliography. Index.
Description:
When published in 1981, "The Mismeasure of Man" was immediately hailed as a masterwork, the answer to those who would classify people, rank them according to their supposed genetic gifts and limits. And yet the idea of innate limits -- of biology as destiny -- dies hard, as witness the attention devoted to "The Bell Curve," whose arguments are here so effectively anticipated and thoroughly undermined by Stephen Jay Gould. In this edition Dr. Gould traces the subsequent history of the controversy on innateness right through "The Bell Curve." Further, he has added five essays on questions of "The Bell Curve" in particular and on race, racism, and biological determinism in general. "A major contribution toward deflating pseudobiological 'explanations' of our present social woes." -- Leo J. Kamin, Princeton University
From the Publisher:
In the current heated discussions of hereditary vs. environmental impacts on IQ, Gould's National Book Critics' Circle Award-winning book deserves a hearing.
THE MISMEASURE OF MAN, an intriguing historical study of scientific racism, traces monogeny and pologeny, phrenology, recapitulation and hereditarian IQ theories. It illustrates both the logical inconsistencies of the theories and the prejudicially motivated, albeit unintentional, misuse of data in each case.
"A rare book--at once of great importance and wonderful to read...A major addition to the scientific literature." (Saturday Review)
Contents:
1. Introduction
2. American Polygeny and Craniometry before Darwin: Blacks and Indians as Separate, Inferior Species
3. Measuring Heads: Paul Broca and the Heyday of Craniology
4. Measuring Bodies: Two Case Studies on the Apishness of Undesirables
5. The Hereditarian Theory of IQ: An American Invention
6. The Real Error of Cyril Burt: Factor Analysis and the Reification of Intelligence
7. A Positive Conclusion
Critique of The Bell Curve
Three Centuries' Perspectives on Race and Racism