The Professor in the Cage

An English professor begins training in mixed martial arts in order to learn more about the science and history of men's aggression. Jonathan Gottschall sees a challenge when a mixed martial arts (MMA) facility opens across the street from his business. He works up his courage and finds himself training for an all-out cage battle at the age of forty, out of shape, and dissatisfied with his job as an adjunct English professor. He sees it not only as a personal challenge, but also as a chance to answer topics that have piqued his interest for years: Why do men fight? And why do so many ostensibly good people enjoy watching?

Gottschall's unusual journey from the college classroom to the fighting cage drives an important new examination into the science and history of violence in The Professor in the Cage. Our species' insatiable interest in both violence and the rituals that keep violence in check is exemplified by the growing popularity of mixed martial arts (MMA), a full-contact sport in which competitors punch, strangle, and kick each other into submission. Humans are masters of what Gottschall refers to as the monkey dance: a dizzying variety of rule-bound contests that establish hierarchies while minimizing risk and social disorder. From duels to football to child roughhousing, humans are masters of what Gottschall refers to as the monkey dance: a dizzying variety of rule-bound contests that establish hierarchies while minimizing risk and social disorder. Gottschall's harrowing journey—through excruciating agony, humiliation, his wife's skepticism, and, finally, his own cage fight—uncovers the uncomfortable truth that, as horrific as these fights can be, the world would be a much more chaotic and dangerous place without them.