The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex Literary Elements

The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex Literary Elements

Genre

Nonfiction

Setting and Context

The book is written in the context of evolutionary theory.

Narrator and Point of View

Third-person narrative

Tone and Mood

Informative, optimistic, hopeful

Protagonist and Antagonist

The narrator is the protagonist

Major Conflict

The main conflict is parts two and three, where the author says that females' choosiness has made them inferior to competitive males.

Climax

The climax is that human beings are a special form of animals with advanced behaviors.

Foreshadowing

Their choosiness traits prefigure the weakness of the female gender.

Understatement

The role of natural selection is inconspicuous. Besides enabling the competitive creatures to flourish, it also enhances the desired genetic inheritance.

Allusions

The story alludes to the origin of man.

Imagery

The evolutionary imagery is predominant in the book. Darwin explains how humans evolved from animals to be what they are today. According to Darwin, the white Europeans are the most civilized group of people.

Paradox

The main paradox is that the author describes females as inferior to men due to their choosiness. Ironically, the women have the power of choosing a competitive male with desired traits. Consequently, the point at which a woman becomes inferior to a man is entirely satirical.

Parallelism

The human evolution story parallels modern-day religious beliefs.

Metonymy and Synecdoche

N/A

Personification

Animals are personified as less advanced human beings.

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