Why we all want to be monkeys

Monkey surprise (Photo credit: @Doug88888)

I’ve been seeing monkeys everywhere lately. SurveyMonkey and MailChimp are two popular web services (I’ve used SurveryMonkey in the past, and I currently use MailChimp to send free stories). I see giant inflatable monkeys at auto dealerships and community festivals. Marcel the monkey even made Ross a little less insufferable on Friends. Monkey wrenches, monkey bars, and monkey bread. Monkey in the middle. Monkeys are everywhere in human society. The question is: Why?

We don’t just love monkeys – we want to be monkeys. Here’s why:

Monkeys know how to have a good time – Monkeys laugh. A lot. At any old thing, whether it’s another monkey falling on his monkey butt or a great monkey joke.
Monkeys know how to get angry – Everyone knows what monkeys do when they get mad. You know what I mean. Poo. They throw poo. Who among us has never wanted to throw our own feces at someone that made us mad? Let him cast the first turd.
Monkeys have style – Monkeys glide from branch to branch with grace and an acrobatic flair. They show more agility when they fall than most humans do in the Olympics. Monkeys are the reason that human gymnastics is even a thing. If we let monkeys compete, they would win the gold every time.

There you have it. Humans aspire to monkeyhood. This may even be a reason people resist the notion that we evolved from monkeys. It makes us seem like we took a step back.