Last and First Men · Character

The Fourth Men

Artificial beings built by the Third Men to surpass their makers, they perfect themselves into the Great Brains and inherit a world they can no longer touch.

supporting

Also known as the Fourth Men, the artificial Fourth Men

First appearance: Man Remakes Himself

As a supporting figure in Last and First Men, The Fourth Men is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

The Fourth Men are the new species designed by the Great Brain, with enhanced senses, telepathic abilities, and a long lifespan.

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The Fourth Men are the Third Men's engineered successors — designed to be purely intellectual, and succeeding so completely that they become sessile, affectionless, and incapable of art or play. Their thwarted research breeds a jealousy of their menials' physical and emotional lives, which they punish with increasingly unjust rule. They embody the novel's warning that a species can perfect one faculty at the cost of everything that makes a life worth living.

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Rising action.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

The emotional peak occurs when the Fifth Men, having achieved profound self-awareness and intimacy over millen…

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In the story

The Fourth Men appears across 4 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Man Remakes Himself
The Fourth Men are the new species designed by the Great Brain, with enhanced senses, telepathic abilities, and a long lifespan. They are created to pursue deeper research.
I: The First of the Great Brains
The species to which the first true individual belongs, produced through artificial means.
II: The Tragedy of the Fourth Men
The artificial species of Great Brains, obsessed with intellection, who face frustration and a crisis of meaning.
III: The Fifth Men
The creators of the Fifth Men, who meticulously design the new species.

Chapter companion notes

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See The Fourth Men in Man Remakes Himself