Chapter = 1 The Damn Human Race

Q 1=Man is usually called "the Highest animal" on the basis of their intelligence. what are the specific traits that make him the "lowest animal" from Twain? (Punjab University 2012)
Ans:
Man is usually called "the Highest animal" on the basis of their intelligence.But, according to 'Mark Twain', He has certain such traits which show that man is not the highest animal but "the lowest animal" on the surface of earth.In his essay entitled "The damned Human Race" he bring to light these characteristics.
It is true that man is very greedy and kills animals not only for satisfying his hunger but also for enjoyment. He gives the example of an English earl who killed 72 buffaloes while on a hunting tour with his companions but they ate only one and leave 71 to rot. On the other hand, a hungry anaconda have crushed and swallowed one of the 7 calves provided by the writer. No doubt, many other lowest animals like bees ants etc gather food but they do it only for one season. They are not hungry beyond like man.
Man keeps harems and make cruel laws for the ladies. He is indecent, vulgar and absence in his behaviour. He does not have any tolerance.History is full of his cruelties. He is very fond of killing his fellows and is very revengeful.
He raises armies for organized butchery of his enemies and strangers. He  murdered him and snatches away their wealth as well as their land. He makes other his slaves. He does not do his own work with his own hands but forces other to do that.
he is a religious  being but his religiosity has not been able to control his inner meanness. He kills his religious opponent with open and light heart. The writer, satirically enough, says that once he was able to tame a number of animals and all of them live peacefully and happy with one and another. But once he kept man of different religious creeds with one another and all of them lived peacefully and kills one and another soon after!
On the basis of above traits,
Mark Twain is of the view that man is not "the highest animal" but "the lowest animals" in the gradation of living beings.
Q 2: How does twain try to shock the reader? What might be his purpose in using this technique?
(Gujrat University 2012)
Ans: 
In his essay "The Damn Human Race" Mark Twain adopts such a terrifically satiric style of expression that shock the reader like a sudden hurricane.It is though the force of satire that he is able to give the reader a sudden jolt. Here he at once claims that , according to his experimental finding, man and not animal is a t the lower level in gradation of living beings. He reminds us of the famous British satirist, Jonathan swift (1667-17450 who replaces man by horse and horse by man in the fourth ( and last) part/voyage of Gulliver's Travels"yahoo" is the lower level of man that is inferior  to "Houyhnhnm", The higher level of horse. Mark twain has done the same. He claims that man is "the lowest animal" whereas cats, dogs, insects etc. are "the highest animals" 
So far as his purpose in using this reversal technique is concerned, he has used it to surprise his readers to the last degree right in the beginning. it is to make his essay forceful that he has done this. if he would not have used this technique , the essay would never leave such a forceful and everlasting effect on the readers. Now the readers remember the essay long after they have read it! And it is through satiric reversal of places of man and animals that twain has been able to achieve that desired goal.
Q 3: Point out some of the examples of political and religious atrocities referred to in the essay by the author. Has Twain gone overboard here? Or does man deserve this attack?
Ans:
In his essay entitled "The Damn Human Race" Mark Twain has proved that man deserves to be known as "the lowest animal" and not "the highest animal" on the basis of different characteristics found in him and expressed/exposed by him on different occasions in human history. Mark Twain has given mnay examples of man's politics and religious atrocities  committed by his fellow being. We give below some of these examples as desired in the question.
1. In North America, Red Indians used to pluck out the eyes of their prisoners.
2. King John of England Inserted red-hot iron-bar in the eyes of his on nephew to render him untroublesome
for him.
3. Richard I of England shut up a host of Jew-families in a tower and set fire to it, burning all the fellows alive!
4. During The reign of bloody Mary, numberless people were murdered brutally.
5. During the time of  Caesars, the same atrocities were committed  continuously.
6.French Revolution also left the number of horrible stories of murder and killing.
Mark Twain is very bitter in his expression, still he has not gone overboard and has given an honest and true picture of man.Anyhow, there is one thing that goes against him. He has given only one sided picture of man and left all those Prophets, Reformers and other noble persons altogether who had worked hard for making man a brother of man. Man, no doubt, deserves that attack by Twain.
Q 4: This essay was written in the early 1900's. It is true today? Have people improved in a century's time? (Punjab-2002, Sargodha-2011)
Ans:
It is almost a hundred years since Mark Twain wrote his essay "The Damn Human Race" and tried to occupies that animals in the gradation of living beings. But the things have not  at all changed in a century time and people  have not changed at all!
There is a great uproar of  universal/human brotherhood today but man is killing man. Man has not learn tolerance. In Asia, Africa and Europe, people are killing people. Only Australia and America are a little peaceful and it is perhaps because of there geographical situation! Other places --and there are many of these --- are red with human blood! people have not improved even a bit!
There are bloodsheds  still at different places on earth in the name of race, colour,  language, religion and other such things.
There are millions and millions of refugees  in the world today who have left their own homeland in search of security .Intolerance has today taken the place of tolerance. Man can only improve his situation only when he learns the value of tolerance.