The Female of the Species

The Female of the Species

Sung by: Julia Ecklar
Leslie Fish (composer)
Based on: "The Female of the Species" by Rudyard Kipling (Original poem)

The Female of the Species Lyrics

When the Himalayan peasant meets the he-bear in his pride, He shouts to scare the monster, who will often turn aside. But the she-bear thus accosted rends the peasant tooth and nail. For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.

When Nag the basking cobra hears the careless foot of man, He will sometimes wriggle sideways and avoid it if he can. But his mate makes no such motion where she camps beside the trail. For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.

When the early Jesuit fathers preached to Hurons and Choctaws, They prayed to be delivered from the vengeance of the squaws. Twas the women, not the warriors, turned those stark enthusiasts pale. For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.

Man's timid heart is bursting with the things he must not say, For the Woman that God gave him isn't his to give away; But when hunter meets with husbands, each confirms the others tale— The female of the species is more deadly than the male.

She who faces Death by torture for each life beneath her breast May not deal in doubt or pity—must not swerve for fact or jest. These be purely male diversions—not in these her honor dwells—She the Other Law we live by, is that Law and nothing else.

Unprovoked and often charges—even so the she-bear fights, Speech that drips, corrodes, and poisons—even so the cobra bites, Scientific vivisection of one nerve till it is raw And the victim writhes in anguish—like the Jesuit with the squaw!

So it comes that Man, the coward, when he gathers to confer With his fellow-braves in council, dare not leave a place for her Where, at war with Life and Conscience, he uplifts his erring hands To some God of Abstract Justice—which no woman understands.

And Man knows it! Knows, moreover, that the Woman that God gave him Must command but may not govern—shall enthrall but not enslave him. And She knows, because She warns him, and Her instincts never fail, That the Female of Her Species is more deadly than the Male.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Kipling
• Julia Ecklar
• Leslie Fish
• Horse Tamers Daughter
• Female of the Species

[Tharkun]

Do you have her Dane-geld, perchance? I always wanted to hear that set to music!

[KitsuneOokamiYasha]

@Tharkun um no i don't think so *goes to look it up on yahoo search* nope sorry interesting poem though would make an interesting song as well.

[Tharkun]

@KitsuneOokamiYasha It's okay - your Ecklar link turned out to garner me the MP3 for free when I asked. Apparently, it was only on an audio cassette that is available absolutely nowhere. Also, all the folk singers Bob Kanefsky has invited to make fun of themselves seem a very tightly-knit group, because it was Fish who sang Dane-geld, not Ecklar.

[KitsuneOokamiYasha]

@Tharkun Cool glad you got, hey if you put it up on youtube will you tell me i would like to hear it as well. You've gotten me curious sorry bout the short note have to take my mom to the doctor.

[doctorpsycho1960]

Man propounds negotiations, man accepts the compromise. Fear or foolishness compels him grant some semblance of a trial even to his fiercest foe, but....

[KitsuneOokamiYasha]

Filling in the missing parts of the Poem are you? lol i do wish the song included the whole poem it definatly would add more to the song and round it out a bit.

[RedwoodTheElf]

@namekman01

Now, Now...you need to read more Kipling...that guy knew what was what. He wrote the original story from which Disney swiped (a very small part of) for the move "The Jungle Book" - They didn't even do ALL the Mowgli stories, only a very small part of the first story (and they changed Kaa into a villain instead of one of Mowgli's allies)

[namekman01]

@RedwoodTheElf well, i meant the singer.....although its alot harder to take the poem seriously now that i know it was written by a man.....i mean men often joke about being pu*** whipped by their wives/girlfriends

[RedwoodTheElf]

@namekman01

Um...it's based on a poem by Rudyard Kipling...a man.

[namekman01]

HAHAHAHAHA, this song is a bit emasculating, but its nice to finally hear women boasting about their balls

[WarriorHawkSpirit]

This song is so true! Im a girl. You should SEE Ryan. I`m coming, he hears his mom calling. "Huh? Whuzzat? Coming, mother!!" lol. Matthew is the only guy who talks to me, and everyone else stares at me like I deal in witchcraft. Does action replay dsi count as witchcraft?

[Chloecantfly]

What album is this from?! Im looking to buy it!

[TheEndKing]

@ARP7777777: Ha ha ha ha! You're good people. I likes yous.

[thenekowithwings]

00:10 to skip the wolf at the beginning

[ARP7777777]

@TheEndKing Yes . . .

[TheEndKing]

@ARP7777777: You laughed. At least in your head.