Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 1, 1995 TAG: 9501040019
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: HOLIDAY
SOURCE: PATRICIA BRENNAN THE WASHINGTON POST
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
After they watch ``The Human Animal: A Personal View of the Human Species,'' his six-part series beginning tonight at 10 on The Learning Channel, they'll remember him for the naked couple who walk through a shopping mall.
As for Episode 4, which set viewing records in England, that one contains thermal-imaging footage of a couple engaged in sexual intercourse with tiny cameras on the couple's genitals to show ejaculation and the cervix in action.
That footage is not particularly erotic, and Morris, who initially considered the installment ``unmakable,'' thinks the final product is ``too scientific.'' He said he was surprised that 12 million British viewers tuned in. ``I didn't expect to get such a strong reaction. I hadn't realized that in the 1990s people were so interested in this.''
As narrator, Morris closes ``The Biology of Love'' by emphasizing the pair-bonding that has proved to be the best way to bring up offspring.
``It's much more difficult to rear children on your own. It can be done, but it's not easy. Two parents together in the family unit, that's what's evolved in our species. Erotic behavior has been part and parcel of the human species over millions of years, because it kept the male and female together and that doubled the care of the offspring.''
He said the people who agreed to participate in the filming of Episode 4, ``The Biology of Love,'' are ``a young married couple who love one another.'' Only the cameraman was present, he said, and the footage was prepared by a team of medical specialists.
Installments of ``The Human Animal'' are rooted in Morris's books, written between 1962 and 1991. ``The Naked Ape'' presented his view that humans are just another species of primates. It so incensed some people that in some countries it was banned, and in others it was burned by religious authorities.
Morris draws a distinction between his role as a scientist and his personal views.
``We may prefer to think of ourselves as fallen angels, but in reality we are risen apes,'' he says. ``As a scientist, I show you what people do, why religion is so important. ... I don't think there's anything in this series that's anti-religious, but I don't believe calling people animals is anti-religious: We are animals; we share 98 percent of our genetic makeup with apes. We're only beginning to realize that we're part of nature and have to protect the environment we live in or die.''
In tonight's opener of ``The Human Animal'' Morris observes body language from gestures specific to a given culture to behavior that is common to us all. He traces our modern actions back to our primeval past and shows how we are different from our cousins the chimpanzees, and how we are similar.
Morris's conclusion: that from the time humans stood up and became bipedal, co-operative hunters, curiosity made us the dominant species on this planet.
The act of standing up also displayed our sexual apparatus. But Americans are still sufficiently prudish that The Learning Channel asked that footage of the naked couple walking together be edited. Europeans got the full frontal view and closeups. We don't.
``I was opposed to the opening sequence,'' said Morris. ``All the behavior in the series was to be natural. I said I wouldn't have any actors. But the argument was that this was so totally artificial, so staged, that there's not going to be any question about it. It certainly woke up the viewing audience here and made them stop drinking their coffee.''
To film Episode 3 (``The Human Zoo''), producer-director John Macnish wanted to test reactions of city people and villagers to the plight of a person in trouble. Macnish himself faked a collapse on the ground.
In New York City, Morris recounted, ``people were sort of skateboarding around him. In the [English] village, people rushed out of their houses to help. They were doing several takes in different parts of the village, and on the third occasion an old lady came out and said, `Oh, you're the man who keeps falling down. Why don't you come in and have a cup of tea?' ''
What makes this series endlessly fascinating is seeing the variety in the human species through Morris's eyes and enjoying his sometimes wry words. In short, watching us is great fun.
by CNB