| The Columbia World of Quotations. 1996. |
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| NUMBER: | 15784 |
| QUOTATION: | A hairy quadruped, furnished with a tail and pointed ears, probably arboreal in its habits. |
| ATTRIBUTION: | Charles Darwin (1809–1882), British naturalist. The Descent of Man, ch. 21 (1871).
Referring to the ancestry of humankind, according to Darwin’s theory. “For my own part,” Darwin wrote, “I would as soon be descended from that heroic little monkey ... or that old baboon ... as from a savage who delights to torture his enemies, offers up bloody sacrifices, practices infanticide without remorse, treats his wives like slaves, knows no decency, and is haunted by the grossest superstitions.” |
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| | | The Columbia World of Quotations. Copyright © 1996 Columbia University Press. |
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