The Female of the Species (poem) The Female of the Species (poem) "The Female of the Species" is a poem by Rudyard Kipling originally published in 1911. The title and refrain have been used as a title for at least three other works (see The Female of the Species (disambiguation)). It begins with illustrations of the greater deadliness of the females of different species, the Himalayan bear, the cobra and the Native American, who frightened the Jesuits more than the men. It continues with the general thought that women, "must be deadlier than the male", as she is formed for the one purpose - motherhood. Woman,
Female of the Species to his late father, who was reported to dislike his son's taste of music, "Female of the Species" is a funky, upbeat Latin-flavoured number with feel-good sounding vibes and vocals reminiscent of lounge singers such as Perry Como and Frank Sinatra combined with keyboardist Franny Griffiths' trademark sound effects and Scott's dark humoured lyrics. The song borrows to some extent, both thematically and in overall aesthetic, from The Walker Brothers' theme song for the 1967 film "Deadlier Than The Male". When the song was performed at later concerts, Scott usually walked into the audience to shake the front concert-goers by