CHAPTER III

GROWTH AND REPRODUCTION

I.--_The Early Position of the Sexes_

A further examination into the opinion of the superiority of the male--Contradictions to the accepted view of female inferiority--A new way of stating the problem--The female as the creator of the male--Examples of the simplest types of the sexes--Predominance of the female in the animal kingdom below the invertebrates--Superiority of the female in size and often in power of function--Complemental male husbands--Illustrations of male parasites--Corroborative evidence from the sex-elements--The primary service of the male to assist the female in the race-work--Sex-parasitism among females--This explained by the conditions under which the species live--The lessons to be drawn from sex-parasitism--Structural modifications acquired for adapting the sexes to different modes of life--Care of offspring not always confined to the female--Among fishes it is the father who gives any attention to the young--The superiority of the female persists among higher forms--Examples--Sex-equality among birds--Conclusion--The sexual relationship may assume almost any form to suit the varying conditions of life.

II.--_Two Examples--The Beehive and the Spider_

The case of the beehive--The drones--The queen-mother--The sterile-workers--The sacrifice of the sexes to the Life-Force--The maternal instinct among the workers--This has persisted after the atrophy of the sexual needs--Maternal love has expanded out into social affection--Application of the lessons of the beehive--Analogy with modern society--The Intellectuals among women--Do they understand what they really want--The organic necessity of love--The price of sterility--The courtship of the Spider--Mr. Bernard Shaw's Ann--The part played by woman in courtship--Her passivity only apparent--Female superiority with which sexuality began remains in every courtship--The fierce hunger of the male--His absorption by the female--Nothing can, or should, alter this--The importance of woman's activity in love in connection with her claim for emancipation--General observations and conclusion.

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