Survival of the Sickest

by Sharon Moalem

Elaine Morgan Character Analysis

Morgan was a writer who became interested in evolution in the 1970s. She was skeptical of the savannah hypothesis, which stated that humans adapted due to conditions found in the savannah and the development of hunting techniques. Morgan then discovered and became a proponent of Alister Hardy’s aquatic ape hypothesis, which argued that humans evolved as they did because they lived in and around water.

Elaine Morgan Quotes in Survival of the Sickest

The Survival of the Sickest quotes below are all either spoken by Elaine Morgan or refer to Elaine Morgan. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Evolution and Illness Theme Icon
).

Chapter 8 Quotes

That still doesn’t explain the lack of evolutionary pressure against bipedalism and the accompanying reproductive risk caused by the change in pelvic shape. Unless—what if the water changed the equation somehow and made the process easier? If the water made the birthing process easier, then most of the evolutionary pressure would favor the advantages those aquatic apes gained from the shift to two feet.

Related Characters: Sharon Moalem (speaker), Elaine Morgan, Alister Hardy
Page Number and Citation: 202
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Survival of the Sickest LitChart as a printable PDF.
"My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." -Graham S.
Survival of the Sickest PDF

Elaine Morgan Character Timeline in Survival of the Sickest

The timeline below shows where the character Elaine Morgan appears in Survival of the Sickest. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 8: That’s Life: Why You and Your iPod Must Die
Interdisciplinary Science and Research Theme Icon
Writer Elaine Morgan became interested in evolution in the 1970s. When she read books on the savannah hypothesis,... (full context)
Environment, Ancestry, and Race Theme Icon
Morgan came across the work of marine biologist Alister Hardy, who proposed a theory called the... (full context)
Environment, Ancestry, and Race Theme Icon
Very few people took Hardy seriously until Elaine Morgan, who built a compelling case on top of his theory. She theorized that for a... (full context)