Page 249 - The Social Weapon: Darwinism

247

woman's friendship is better than a dog's." His statements about

marriage made no reference at all to features such as friendship,
affection, love, devotion, loyalty, closeness, sincerity and trust
between two people who spend their lives together. About mar-
riage, Darwin also had this to say:
… loss of time—cannot read in the evenings—fatness and idle-
ness—anxiety and responsibility—less money for books, etc.,—if

many children, forced to gain one's bread ... perhaps my wife
won't like London; then the sentence is banishment and degrada-
tion with indolent idle fool. 143
These unconscionable statements are perfectly natural,
coming as they do from one who saw no difference between

human beings and animals, and thought that women and chil-

Darwin wrote that being married to a woman provided the man
with a "constant companion, a friend in old age, ... an object to
be beloved and played with, better than a dog anyhow." These
words neatly summarizes Darwin's view of women.
Below: A picture of Darwin and his wife