My Uncle Oswald is a farce and satire, telling the story of a sex-obsessed man called Oswald, who embarks on a eugenics mission. Essentially, this mission is to collect the sperm of artists and geniuses, to give to women who want clever or talented children. As such, this novel is based on a silly and ludicrous idea, exposing the absurdity of eugenics theories.
Sex is the main theme in this novel and it is all Oswald is concerned about. Although Oswald promises to tell his reader about how he amassed his fortune, he ends up describing his sex life in obscene detail. Dahl paints this in a humorous light, understating some darker elements in the texts that seem to suggest coercion.
The plot chronicles Oswald and Yasmin's journey across Europe, as they try to collect samples from royalty, geniuses, and artists. Along the way, they come across some familiar faces, such as playwright Bernard Shaw, and Albert Einstein. Overall, Dahl likely didn't intend for this novel to be taken seriously, given its humorous, lewd, and farcical nature.
