comparative anatomy, n.Definitions

Comparative anatomy (n.) reads ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the animal as a whole so coherent that Cuvier could boast he knew the entire beast from a single bone.

Comparative anatomy (n.) shows ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠so many animals built on one simple plan — a part shortened here, lengthened there — that a faint ray of hope gleams that mechanism may yet explain life.

Comparative anatomy (n.) cuts ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠bodies up and fragments them in space, and so discloses the great resemblances that the gaze, scanning organisms whole, could never see.