The fire in the stone: prehistoric fiction from Charles Darwin to Jean M. Auel

Generic evolution. From Boitard's Paris before man to London's Before Adam ; From Rosny's First artist to del Rey's last neanderthal ; From Fisher's "Testament of man" to Auel's "Earth's children"

Thematic evolution. Nature and human nature ; Sex and gender ; Race or the human race ; A cultural triad : language, religion, art.