Mark Twain
Mark Twain is a sobriquet of Samuel L Clemens who was born in 1835, in Florida, Missouri and died in 1910. He is considered to be the greatest humorist, narrator, writer and social observer in America during his time and even now. In his satirical essay “The Damned Human Race”, Mark Twain compares man to animals such as cat, squirrel anaconda etc., to disagree with Darwin Theory of Evolution that states the man is the “highest animal”. Twain uses several compelling examples to demonstrate the vengeful, hatred, wasteful, obscene as well as intolerance and unkind nature of human beings. However, whilst this may be true to some point, the human race is also the most brilliant, kind, responsible and reasonable compared to other animals.
Twain says that he has read about hunters who killed seventy-two buffaloes and then ate one of them and left seventy-one to rot. He then goes ahead and compares man to anaconda. He claims that anaconda only ate one calf and left the rest. In this context, Twain tries to demonstrate the destructive nature of humankind and that they destroy whatever they don’t need. On the contrary, human beings are one of the most responsible creatures compared to all animals. Human beings are trying to stop climate change; they are defending the oceans as well as ancient forest. Moreover, human beings are also fighting for peace and disarmament. Furthermore, humans are trying to stop genetic engineering of foods and at the same time eliminating the release of toxic elements on land. So, as much as Twain argued that man is wasteful, the positive strides taken by man outweighs the negative.
In his “Cursed essay” Twain argues that human beings are cruel, traitorous and corrupt “…of all the animals, the human is the only one that is cruel”. Twain then goes ahead and compares humans with a cat. As much as our race is not innocent, and our actions may seem to validate Twain’s accusation, the actions do not define human since they are not considered to be the norm. Human beings have put laws and Judicial systems to guide their actions and ensure that such cruelly does not happen. Besides, those who harm others are severely dealt with by the law. So, as much as human actions may seem cruel to Mark Twain, unlike other animals, they have put measures in place to guide them.
Twain also uses the concept of slavery to accuse humankind as cruel animals. “Man is the only slave, And he is the only one who enslaves.” The fact that human beings participate in slavery cannot be denied; however, it cannot be assumed that human beings are the only ones who practice slavery. Studies revealed that there are other species of animals that enslave their own. For instance, species of ants called Protomagnathus Americanus to seize the young ones of their fellow ants and coerce them into working for their new Master. These ants also conduct raids on their ants and kill their adults. There even other examples that prove the man is not the only animal that enslaves. This evidence nullifies Twain’s claim that human beings are the only animals that enslave. However, human beings were reasonable enough to notice that slavery is unfair and that it cannot be accepted in any society. Strict rules are set in order to ensure it does not happen.
Human beings’ bodies are not perfect, and therefore they do have weaknesses that may result into them contracting diseases, Twain claims “.. Man starts as a child and lives on the disease the end, as a regular diet “. As much as this may be true, it is also human beings who strive to create a cure for these diseases. Moreover, they are also the ones who study the biology of these animals in order to cure them in case of infection. This reason should outweigh Twain’s argument that humans are prone to diseases compared to other animals.
In summation, humans may be imperfect beings, as Twain sarcastically claimed in his list of many examples on the weaknesses of human beings; they also work hard and look forward to perfection. The human race always works hard and focus on improving one’s life. This may not be an easy task to accomplish, but through the actions that they have demonstrated, it’s evident that they are developing and making progress. Twain’s gave up on the human race, yet there is much room for improvement. The human race is taking actions to correct their past mistakes and also ensure it doesn’t occur in future, for instance, in controlling pollution.