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Darwin in letters, 1871: An emptying nest
Summary
The year 1871 was an extremely busy and productive one for Darwin, with the publication in February of his long-awaited book on human evolution, Descent of man. The other main preoccupation of the year was the preparation of his manuscript on expression.…
Matches: 25 hits
- … The year 1871 was an extremely busy and productive one for Darwin, seeing the …
- … book out of my head’. But a large proportion of Darwin’s time for the rest of the year was devoted …
- … way, and the initial reception of the book in the press. Darwin fielded numerous letters from …
- … offered sharp criticism or even condemnation. Darwin had expected controversy. ‘I shall be …
- … a bare-faced manner.”‘ The most lively debate centred on Darwin’s evolutionary account of the …
- … taste. Correspondence with his readers and critics helped Darwin to clarify, and in some cases …
- … year was the preparation of his manuscript on expression. Darwin continued to investigate the …
- … also brought a significant milestone for the family, as Darwin’s eldest daughter Henrietta was …
- … during several past years, has been a great amusement’. Darwin had been working fairly continuously …
- … work on species theory in the late 1830s. In recent years, Darwin had collected a wealth of material …
- … to human evolution was comparatively small, reflecting Darwin’s aim of showing kinship with animals …
- … he is “torn to pieces” by people wanting copies’, Darwin wrote to his son Francis on 28 February …
- … promotes the sale’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 26 March 1871 ). The profits for Darwin were …
- … first two printings, Darwin wrote to Murray on 20 March 1871 , ‘It is quite a grand trade to be a …
- … in memory of the book’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, 20 March 1871 ). Reaction …
- … to read it ( letter from James Crichton-Browne, 19 February 1871 ). The African explorer and …
- … pleasant or not’ (letter from W. W. Reade, 21 February 1871). The geologist William Boyd Dawkins …
- … to buy them’ ( letter from W. B. Dawkins, 23 February 1871 ). Thomas Henry Huxley marvelled that …
- … liberal or orthodox. The American philosopher and journalist Francis Ellingwood Abbot incorporated …
- … man & we were the best of friends’, he wrote to his son Francis on 28 February . However, …
- … Darwin had been receiving regular reports from his cousin Francis Galton on the progress of …
- … in order to facilitate cross-circulation ( letter from Francis Galton, 13 September 1871 ). …
- … science ( letter to Horace Darwin, [15 December 1871] ). Francis was now studying medicine at St …
- … of Trinity College, planned a trip to America, and invited Francis and two Cambridge friends. Darwin …
- … be almost superhuman virtue to give it up’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, 16 May [1871] ). Darwin …
Darwin’s queries on expression
Summary
When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect observations more widely and composed a list of queries on human expression. A number of handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller…
Matches: 23 hits
- … When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect …
- … ease of distribution sometime in late 1867 or early 1868. Darwin went over his questions, refining …
- … was the collection of observations on a global scale. Darwin was especially interested in peoples …
- … cultural and conventional, or instinctive and universal. Darwin used his existing correspondence …
- … and with the mouth a little drawn back at the corners?” Darwin’s questionnaire was an extension of …
- … was also carefully devised so as to prevent the feelings of Darwin’s remote observers from colouring …
- … and not the susceptibilities of a moral nature.” Darwin did not typically countenance such …
- … the collection of information to its display in print. After Darwin received all of the replies to …
- … except “yes” or “no.” “The same state of mind” Darwin would later assert in Expression of the …
- … uniformity.” Table of Correspondence about Darwin’s Questionnaire (click on the letter …
- … could available online ahead of schedule as part of the “Darwin and Human Nature” project, funded by …
- … Blair, R.H. 11 July 1871 Worcester College for the …
- … Brooke, C.A.J. 30 April 1871 Sarawak, Borneo …
- … Chaumont, F.S.B.F. de 11 March 1871 Woolston, …
- … Crichton-Browne, James 3 April 1871 West Riding …
- … Bartlett and S. Sutton Darwin, Francis …
- … pouting Darwin, W.E. [after 29 March 1868] …
- … blushing in blind students Darwin, W.E. [7 …
- … Donders, F.C. 28 March 1871 Utrecht, Netherlands …
- … Foster, Michael 4 June [1871] Trinity College, …
- … from Mansel Weale Galton, Francis 7 Nov …
- … Gray, Asa 14 April 1871 Cambridge, Massachusetts, …
- … Gray, Asa 10 & 14 March [1871] Cambridge, …
Francis Galton
Summary
Galton was a naturalist, statistician, and evolutionary theorist. He was a second cousin of Darwin’s, having descended from his grandfather, Erasmus. Born in Birmingham in 1822, Galton studied medicine at King’s College, London, and also read mathematics…
Matches: 11 hits
- … and evolutionary theorist. He was a second cousin of Darwin’s, having descended from his grandfather …
- … a natural historical narrative of the journey (Galton 1853). Darwin enjoyed and admired Galton’s …
- … Hereditary Genius (1869), which contained an entry on the Darwin family, including the “author of …
- … for subjects of natural history”. Shortly after Darwin published his preliminary hypothesis …
- … on rabbits to test the theory. He reported regularly to Darwin on these experiments, which involved …
- … Royal Society claiming that his results tended to disprove Darwin’s theory (Galton 1871). This …
- … together to facilitate cross-circulation ( 13 September 1871 ). His views on inheritance continued …
- … Galton shared his views in several lengthy letters, but Darwin struggled with the abstract reasoning …
- … and infirmities, with the aim of improving the population. Darwin was less optimistic about such a …
- … ( 4 January [1873] ). Like most of his contemporaries, Darwin continued to believe in the …
- … men of science: their nature and nurture (Galton 1874), Darwin insisted that he had no particular …
Animals, ethics, and the progress of science
Summary
Darwin’s view on the kinship between humans and animals had important ethical implications. In Descent, he argued that some animals exhibited moral behaviour and had evolved mental powers analogous to conscience. He gave examples of cooperation, even…
Matches: 22 hits
- … Darwin’s view on the kinship between humans and animals had important ethical …
- … a live worm on a hook (‘Recollections’, pp. 358, 388). Darwin’s concern for animals aligned with …
- … and an integral part of medical and veterinary training. Darwin was clearly disturbed by the …
- … sleep to-night’ ( letter to E. R. Lankester, 22 March [1871] ). In Descent , Darwin described …
- … to the last hour of his life’ ( Descent 1: 40). Darwin’s closest encounter with …
- … of different breeds together. Galton reported regularly to Darwin on the results (all negative). He …
- … Society, calling into question the theory of pangenesis. Darwin was taken aback, and swiftly replied …
- … perseverance’ ( letter to Nature , [before 27 April 1871] ). When Galton could no longer look …
- … further cross-circulation and ‘Siamesing’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 13 September 1871 ). …
- … more influenced by experiments on animals than on plants’, Darwin conceded. ‘I think a large number …
- … ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 18 July 1875 ). Darwin was concerned that the method be painless, …
- … 1874 ). In the previous sections, we have traced Darwin’s growing interest in physiology and …
- … were analogous to those performed on dogs and other animals. Darwin’s work on insectivorous plants …
- … an acquaintance of the Darwins, and had corresponded with Darwin cordially about his moral theory, …
- … ( letter to F. B. Cobbe, [14 January 1875] ). Darwin’s involvement in the vivisection …
- … in regard to health &c, I look at as puerile. Darwin saw a need for regulation (licensing …
- … with costly equipment, a supply of animals, etc.. Darwin was concerned that ‘private men’ would be …
- … ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 4 January [1875] ) Darwin worked closely with Burdon …
- … the total abolition of the practice. ‘It seems to me’, Darwin remarked to George Romanes, ‘that …
- … organised defence. To bring more solidarity to the field, Darwin’s son Francis, and a number of his …
- … ( letter from T. L. Brunton, 12 February 1882 ). Darwin declined the offer to be honorary …
- … had its first meeting on 20 April 1882, the day after Darwin’s death. While Darwin was …
Cross and self fertilisation
Summary
The effects of cross and self fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom, published on 10 November 1876, was the result of a decade-long project to provide evidence for Darwin’s belief that ‘‘Nature thus tells us, in the most emphatic manner, that she abhors…
Matches: 28 hits
- … the result of a decade-long project to provide evidence for Darwin’s belief that ‘‘Nature thus tells …
- … on plants with two or three different forms of flowers, Darwin had focused on the anatomical and …
- … of different forms of pollen. Although many plants that Darwin observed had flowers with adaptations …
- … rates, growth, and constitutional vigour. Although Darwin was no stranger to long months and years …
- … … is highly remarkable’ In September 1866, Darwin announced to the American botanist …
- … several years ( To Édouard Bornet, 1 December 1866 ). Darwin began a series of experiments, …
- … ). It was only after a new season of experiments that Darwin would confirm that this poppy shed its …
- … access to flowers was only the tip of the iceberg. Darwin next focused on the California …
- … conditions’ ( From Fritz Müller, 1 December 1866 ). Darwin’s interest was piqued and he described …
- … when self-fertilised, although fewer than crossed plants. Darwin sent some of these seeds to Müller, …
- … [1868] ). Müller, in turn, sent seeds from his plants to Darwin and both men continued to …
- … Müller remarked, on receiving a new batch of seeds from Darwin, ‘that it was ‘curious to see, on …
- … ( From Fritz Müller, 15 June 1869 ). By May 1870, Darwin reported that he was ‘rearing crossed …
- … From a fairly early stage in his experimental programme, Darwin began to pay more attention to the …
- … the sweet pea ( Lathyrus odoratus ), and in October 1867, Darwin wrote to James Moggridge to ask …
- … of the year ( To J. T. Moggridge, 1 October [1867] ). Darwin was beginning to suspect that the …
- … simply did not exist in Britain. During a visit to Darwin in May 1866, Robert Caspary, a …
- … of self-fertilisation’ ( To J. D. Hooker, 23 July [1871] ). Darwin also informed Müller of this …
- … in his hothouse ( To Fritz Müller, 2 August [1871] ). By late 1871, Darwin was already …
- … generations’ ( To Federico Delpino, 22 November 1871 ). Delpino replied that he looked forward to …
- … and horticulture ( From Federico Delpino, 5 December 1871 ). When Darwin began writing in February …
- … 8 January 1876] ). It was his cousin, the statistician Francis Galton, who provided a statistical …
- … to publish the report in the introduction to the book ( To Francis Galton, 13 January [1876] ). …
- … 6 June 1876] ). The project proved to be too complex and Francis Darwin later recalled, ‘the …
- … birth of Darwin’s first grandchild, a son born to Amy and Francis Darwin on 7 September, suddenly …
- … if, as I expect, you find it too much for you’ ( To Francis Darwin, 16 September [1876] ). Francis …
- … have accepted all, though some slightly modified’ ( To Francis Darwin, 20 September [1876] ). …
- … ‘Your corrections are very good & very useful’ ( To Francis Darwin 25 September [1876] ). …
Darwin's in letters, 1873: Animal or vegetable?
Summary
Having laboured for nearly five years on human evolution, sexual selection, and the expression of emotions, Darwin was able to devote 1873 almost exclusively to his beloved plants. He resumed work on the digestive powers of sundews and Venus fly traps, and…
Matches: 24 hits
- … evolution, sexual selection, and the expression of emotions, Darwin was able to devote 1873 almost …
- … (1875) and Cross and self fertilisation (1876). Darwin’s son Francis became increasingly …
- … career to become his father’s scientific secretary. Darwin had always relied on assistance from …
- … the previous year. As was typical, readers wrote to Darwin personally to offer suggestions, …
- … some of which were incorporated in a later edition. Darwin also contributed to discussions in the …
- … in animals. The subject was brought closer to home by Francis Galton’s work on inherited talent, …
- … Station at Naples. Plants that eat and feel? Darwin had resumed experiments on the …
- … 12 January [1873] ). Drosera was the main focus of Darwin’s study of insectivorous plants, a …
- … and alkaloids, and even electrical stimulation. On sending Darwin a specimen of the carnivorous …
- … ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 12 January 1873 ). Darwin found that the glandular hairs on the …
- … to bend inward, so that the plant closed like a fist. Darwin was fascinated by this transmission of …
- … plants , p. 63). The plants secreted a viscid fluid, which Darwin suspected attracted insects by …
- … ., p. 17). Through a series of painstaking experiments, Darwin determined that the secretions …
- … Poisons and electrocution . . . His son Francis was assisting the histologist Edward Emanuel …
- … of medical research in London. On the advice of Klein, Francis obtained a new microscope for his …
- … on botany, he drew more on assistance from his son Francis. While visiting his fiancée, Amy Ruck, in …
- … notes and take tracings of their burrows” ( letter from Francis Darwin, 14 August [1873] ). …
- … [1873] ). Shortly afterwards, it was arranged for Francis to rent a house in the village (Down …
- … to H. E. Litchfield, 20 February 1873 ). The surgeon Francis Stephen Bennet Francois de Chaumont, …
- … of instinct and inheritance when he was asked by his cousin Francis Galton to participate in a study …
- … aims but regarded the project as “utopian” ( letter to Francis Galton, 4 January [1873] ). …
- … and investing money very well” ( letter to Francis Galton, 28 May 1873 ). Among character traits, …
- … his own character, he asked his sons to complete the list. Francis added to his father’s virtues: …
- … vicar, George Sketchley Ffinden, who had been appointed in 1871. Darwin had usually been on good …
Women’s scientific participation
Summary
Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a community of women who participated, often actively and routinely, in the nineteenth-century scientific community. Here is a…
Matches: 15 hits
- … | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a …
- … community. Here is a selection of letters exchanged between Darwin and his workforce of women …
- … Women: Letter 1194 - Darwin to Whitby, M. A. T., [12 August 1849] Darwin …
- … peculiarities in inheritance. Letter 3787 - Darwin, H. E. to Darwin, [29 October …
- … garden. Letter 4523 - Wedgwood, L. C. to Darwin, [6 June 1864] Darwin’s …
- … . Letter 5745 - Barber, M. E. to Darwin, [after February 1867] Mary Barber …
- … Letter 7433 - Wedgwood, F. to Darwin, [9 January 1871] Darwin’s brother-in-law, …
- … Letter 8113 - Treat, M. to Darwin, [20 December 1871] Mary Treat describes her …
- … tells her eldest son, William, that her third eldest son, Francis, is receiving help with his plant …
- … February 1857] Darwin’s nephew, Edmund, writes to Francis with the results of his …
- … in his home. Letter 10517 - Darwin to Francis, F., [29 May 1876] Darwin …
- … Letter 7605 - Darwin to Darwin, H. E., [20 March 1871] Darwin reports to …
- … Letter 7858 - Darwin to Wa llace, A. R., [12 July 1871] Darwin tells Wallace that …
- … 8089 - Darwin to Litc hfield, H. E., [2 December 1871] Darwin sends a chapter on …
- … Letter 10517 - Darwin t o Francis, F., [29 May 1876] Darwin gives his son, Francis …
Darwin in letters, 1872: Job done?
Summary
'My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, 'is so nearly closed. . . What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’, and the tenor of his correspondence throughout the year is one of wistful reminiscence, coupled with a keen eye…
Matches: 27 hits
- … ‘My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, ‘is so nearly closed. . . What little more I can …
- … of On the origin of species , intended to be Darwin’s last, and of Expression of the …
- … of man and selection in relation to sex , published in 1871, these books brought a strong if …
- … 27 July [1872] ). By the end of the year Darwin was immersed in two of the studies that …
- … of books and papers, and the latter formed the subject of Darwin’s last book, The formation of …
- … worms , published in the year before his death. Despite Darwin’s declared intention to take up new …
- … begun many years before. In his private life also, Darwin was in a nostalgic frame of mind, …
- … The last word on Origin The year opened with Darwin, helped by his eldest son William, …
- … on 30 January , shortly after correcting the proofs, and Darwin’s concern for the consolidation of …
- … and sixth editions were costly to incorporate, and despite Darwin’s best efforts, set the final …
- … closely involved in every stage of publication of his books, Darwin was keen to ensure that this …
- … to bring out the new edition in the United States, Darwin arranged with Murray to have it …
- … had to be reset. The investment in stereotype reinforced Darwin’s intention to make no further …
- … A worsening breach The criticisms against which Darwin had taken the greatest trouble to …
- … objections to the theory of natural selection’, Darwin refuted point by point assertions published …
- … Although Mivart was among those who wrote in January to wish Darwin a happy new year, before the …
- … critical and anonymously published review of Descent . Darwin’s supporters had rallied to his …
- … The republication of Wright’s paper had been arranged by Darwin himself (see Correspondence vol. …
- … so bigotted a person as I am made to appear’, complained Darwin ( letter to St G. J. Mivart, 5 …
- … that he would willingly acknowledge himself at fault if only Darwin would renounce `fundamental …
- … letter to St G. J. Mivart, 8 January [1872] ). Despite Darwin’s request that he drop the …
- … ( letter from St G. J. Mivart, 10 January 1872 ). Darwin, determined to have the last word in …
- … 11 January [1872] ). 'I hate controversy,’ Darwin wrote later in the year, possibly with this …
- … drawings shortly afterwards ( letter from Samuel Butler to Francis Darwin, [before 30 May 1872] , …
- … the claims of spiritualists, and Darwin, through his cousin Francis Galton, had with some interest …
- … however, incorporated in the second edition, produced by Francis Darwin after his father’s death. …
- … new name on the list of volunteers: by the beginning of May, Francis Darwin, the Darwins’ third son, …
Darwin and the Church
Summary
The story of Charles Darwin’s involvement with the church is one that is told far too rarely. It shows another side of the man who is more often remembered for his personal struggles with faith, or for his role in large-scale controversies over the…
Matches: 25 hits
- … The story of Charles Darwin’s involvement with the church is one that is told far too rarely. It …
- … unique window into this complicated relationship throughout Darwin’s life, as it reveals his …
- … belief (and doubt) than many non-conformist denominations. Darwin’s parents attended a Unitarian …
- … the necessary studies to be a clergyman. During Darwin’s lifetime, the vast majority of the …
- … income was essential to enjoy a gentlemanly lifestyle. For Darwin, who could rely on the financial …
- … compatible with the pursuit of scientific interests. Indeed, Darwin’s Cambridge mentor, John Stevens …
- … (Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine (1887): 321). Darwin started on his journey around the world …
- … it even through a grove of Palms.—’ (letter to Caroline Darwin, 25–6 April [1832] ). Darwin’s …
- … Museum or some other learned place’ (letter from E. A. Darwin, 18 August [1832] ). Writing to Fox …
- … about—’ (letter to W. D. Fox, [9–12 August] 1835 ). Darwin’s doubts about orthodox belief, and …
- … in 1838 and 1839, as can be read here. In the end, Darwin chose a middle course—a life of ease in …
- … within six years of his return from the Beagle voyage, Darwin moved to Down House, in the …
- … where their children Mary and Charles were buried; later Darwin’s brother Erasmus, Emma’s sister …
- … of Emma, whose religious scruples are discussed here. But Darwin’s correspondence reveals his own …
- … Although he was not the principal landowner in Down, Darwin was a gentleman of means, and clearly …
- … made inroads on Anglican authority in the countryside. The Darwin family took an interest in, and …
- … Many of the letters highlighted in this section focus on Darwin’s long-standing relationship with …
- … To the end of his life Innes refused to be persuaded by Darwin’s theory of evolution, but …
- … cordial; in the first extant letter of the correspondence, Darwin wrote to Innes expressing concern …
- … [1850] and n. 6; and letter to J. B. Innes, 29 May [1871] ). Their true friendship does …
- … request favourably—’ (letter from J. B. Innes, 26 May 1871 ). Indeed Innes had such a high …
- … school and organ funds (letter to J. B. Innes, 13 January 1871 ). Down’s next clergyman …
- … very dull sermons’ (letter to J. B. Innes, 18 January [1871] ). Mr Powell was happy to take up …
- … qualifications’ (letter from J. B. Innes, 5 June 1871 ). Particularly in the early days of …
- … Darwin, including an autobiographical chapter . Edited by Francis Darwin. 3 vols. London: John …
Women as a scientific audience
Summary
Target audience? | Female readership | Reading Variation Darwin's letters, in particular those exchanged with his editors and publisher, reveal a lot about his intended audience. Regardless of whether or not women were deliberately targeted as a…
Matches: 11 hits
- … Female readership | Reading Variation Darwin's letters, in particular those …
- … a broad variety of women had access to, and engaged with, Darwin's published works. A set of …
- … women a target audience? Letter 2447 - Darwin to Murray, J., [5 April 1859] …
- … that his views are original and will appeal to the public. Darwin asks Murray to forward the …
- … and criticisms of style. Letter 2461 - Darwin to Hooker, J. D., [11 May 1859] …
- … typically-male readers. Letter 7124 - Darwin to Darwin, H. E., [8 February 1870] …
- … Letter 7624 - Bathoe, M . B. to Darwin, [25 March 1871] Mary Bathoe responds …
- … Letter 7644 - Barnard, A. to Darwin, [30 March 1871] J. S. Henslow’s daughter, …
- … 7651 - Wedgwood, F. J. to Darwin, H. E., [1 April 1871] Frances Wedgwood offers …
- … 7411 - Pfeiffer, E. J. to Darwin, [before 26 April 1871] The poet Emily Pfeiffer …
- … Letter 8055 - Hennell, S. S. to Darwin, [7 November 1871] Sarah Hennell writes to Darwin …
Moral Nature
Summary
In Descent of Man, Darwin argued that human morality had evolved from the social instincts of animals, especially the bonds of sympathy and love. Darwin gathered observations over many decades on animal behavior: the heroic sacrifices of social insects,…
Matches: 18 hits
- … | Selected Readings In Descent of Man , Darwin argued that human morality had …
- … (Barrett et al. eds. 1987, p. 619) Darwin gathered observations over many decades on …
- … Though rooted in instinctive sympathy, moral behavior for Darwin was not purely automatic or …
- … the social instincts that humans shared with animals. Darwin's moral theory was the most …
- … obligation, compassion, guilt, and the pangs of conscience. Darwin's theory was condemned by …
- … female members of their hive in order to protect the queen. Darwin engaged with his critics in …
- … Letters Letter 7048 : Darwin, W. E., to Darwin, C. R., [April? 1871] In …
- … of ideas, rather than as evolving from animal instinct. Darwin got clarification on this point from …
- … the whole subject" Letter 7645 : Morley, John to Darwin, 30 March 1871 …
- … of Descent of Man in the Pall Mall Gazette (Morley 1871). Darwin admired the review, and …
- … from generation to generation." Letter 7685 : Darwin to Morley, John, 14 April …
- … animal." Letter 7691 , Morley, John, to Darwin, 17 April 1871 "I don …
- … at a time when Paris is aflame". Letter 7145 : Darwin to Cobbe, F. P. 23 March …
- … that he read Immanuel Kant's Metaphysics of ethics . Darwin thanked her for the book, which …
- … 7470 : Wedgwood, Hensleigh to Darwin, [before 3 March 1871] Darwin exchanged long letters …
- … Letter 7537 : Darwin, C. R. to Wenslow, Hensleigh, 3 March [1871] Using the example of …
- … Writing to the American philosopher and free-thinker, Francis Ellingwood Abbott, Darwin suggests …
- … 3. [ available at Darwinonline ] Cobbe, F. P. 1871. 'Darwinism in morals'. …
Darwin in letters, 1874: A turbulent year
Summary
The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early months working on second editions of Coral reefs and Descent of man; the rest of the year was mostly devoted to further research on insectivorous plants. A…
Matches: 24 hits
- … 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early months working …
- … dispute over an anonymous review that attacked the work of Darwin’s son George dominated the second …
- … and traveller Alexander von Humboldt’s 105th birthday, Darwin obliged with a reflection on his debt …
- … ). The death of a Cambridge friend, Albert Way, caused Darwin’s cousin, William Darwin Fox, to …
- … from W. D. Fox, 8 May [1874] ). Such reminiscences led Darwin to the self-assessment, ‘as for one …
- … I feel very old & helpless The year started for Darwin with a week’s visit to …
- … Andrew Clark, whom he had been consulting since August 1873. Darwin had originally thought that …
- … ( letter to B. J. Sulivan, 6 January [1874] ). Darwin mentioned his poor health so frequently in …
- … 1874 ). Séances, psychics, and sceptics Darwin excused himself for reasons of …
- … by George Henry Lewes and Marian Evans (George Eliot), but Darwin excused himself, finding it too …
- … the month, another Williams séance was held at the home of Darwin’s cousin Hensleigh Wedgwood. Those …
- … imposter’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 27 January 1874 ). Darwin agreed that it was ‘all imposture’ …
- … stop word getting to America of the ‘strange news’ that Darwin had allowed ‘a spirit séance’ at his …
- … the first three months of the year and, like many of Darwin’s enterprises in the 1870s, were family …
- … had cost twenty-four shillings.) Murray’s partner, Robert Francis Cooke, informed Darwin that the …
- … fourth son, Leonard, who had joined the Royal Engineers in 1871, went to New Zealand as photographer …
- … (see G. B. Airy ed. 1881). Darwin’s third son Francis married Amy Ruck, the sister of a …
- … work on insectivorous plants. Amy drew a plant and Francis was disappointed that they seemed not to …
- … from Cornwall, but Darwin was unwell when it arrived, so Francis worked on the tiny bladders under …
- … 1874 , and Correspondence vol. 21, letter from Francis Darwin, [11 October 1873] ). …
- … work’ ( letter to D. F. Nevill, 18 September [1874] ).Francis’s new wife, Amy, drew the plant ( …
- … After his wife read Expression , the military surgeon Francis François de Chaumont sent …
- … a donation of £100, and £10 each from his sons George and Francis ( letter to Anton Dohrn, 7 March …
- … a photograph of the station to be sent to Darwin by Francis Maitland Balfour; Darwin offered to try …
3.16 Oscar Rejlander, photos
Summary
< Back to Introduction Darwin’s plans for the illustration of his book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872) led him to the Swedish-born painter and photographer, Oscar Gustaf Rejlander. Rejlander gave Darwin the notes that he had…
Matches: 17 hits
- … < Back to Introduction Darwin’s plans for the illustration of his book The …
- … and photographer, Oscar Gustaf Rejlander. Rejlander gave Darwin the notes that he had himself made …
- … in the early 1870s (he died in January 1875), and Darwin assisted him financially on at least one …
- … to any purchasers’. Phillip Prodger has suggested that Darwin agreed to be photographed by Rejlander …
- … Expression of the Emotions. Open sale of any portraits of Darwin was likely to be highly …
- … Library contains photographs by him of Richard Litchfield (Darwin’s son in law), and another man, …
- … plans for purveying a fanciful or dramatised portrayal of Darwin, he was evidently thwarted, as …
- … transition from pathognomy to portraiture in his work for Darwin must have raised interesting …
- … and on one side. Of the five or so known photographs of Darwin, evidently taken at more than one …
- … photographs. In this way they communicate a sense of Darwin’s commanding intellect and physical …
- … to his son Leonard) was copyrighted by Rejlander in April 1871, and reproduced in the London …
- … periodical press. On 11 November 1871, Rejlander sent Darwin ‘a bundle of cards’, which …
- … This supposition is strengthened by the fact that in October 1871 Darwin himself had written to the …
- … front page of The Illustrated Review on 15 November 1871, and was later re-used, with …
- … was published in Nature in 1874, and was included in Francis Darwin’s list of canonical …
- … of image Oscar Rejlander date of creation 1871 computer-readable …
- … accompanying a laudatory article by Revd R.A. Armstrong. Francis Darwin’s catalogue of portraits of …
Evolution: Selected Letters of Charles Darwin 1860-1870
Summary
This selection of Charles Darwin’s letters includes correspondence with his friends and scientific colleagues around the world; letters by the critics who tried to stamp out his ideas, and by admirers who helped them to spread. It takes up the story of…
Matches: 14 hits
- … This selection of Charles Darwin’s letters includes correspondence with his friends and scientific …
- … admirers who helped them to spread. It takes up the story of Darwin’s life in 1860, in the immediate …
- … career, to the eve of publication of Descent of Man in 1871. In this period Darwin became a …
- … increased accordingly. Letters conveyed public reaction to Darwin, as people who were often complete …
- … worked up, or their religious doubts and concerns for Darwin’s own soul. Darwin himself used letters …
- … world a questionnaire on the expression of the emotions. Darwin also continued to confide in his …
- … yet been pointed out to me. No doubt many will be. Darwin to Huxley, 1860. …
- … have been miserably uncomfortable. Emma to Charles Darwin, 1861. I am …
- … gravitating towards your doctrines … Huxley to Darwin, 1862. I cannot bear …
- … what you think about the derivation of Species … Darwin to Charles Lyell, 1863. …
- … fairly settled & succeeding in India. John Scott to Darwin, 1864. I …
- … was quite out of balance once during our voyage … Darwin to Hooker (on hearing of Robert …
- … that the necks of your horses are badly galled … Darwin to a local landowner, 1866. …
- … now, whether you owe any more … Darwin to his son Francis, 1870. …
4.7 'Vanity Fair', caricature
Summary
< Back to Introduction A letter to Darwin from his publisher John Murray of 10 May 1871 informed him, ‘Your portrait is earnestly desired – by the Editor of Vanity Fair. I hope Mr Darwin may consent to follow the example of Murchison – Bismark [sic] …
Matches: 14 hits
- … < Back to Introduction A letter to Darwin from his publisher John Murray of 10 May …
- … agreeing to be caricatured in Vanity Fair ’s pages . Darwin’s first reaction was anything but …
- … However, he was won round, and the drawing that appeared in 1871 exuded genial sociability. In this …
- … Fair characterisation tallies extremely closely with Francis Darwin’s recollections of his father, …
- … from life – and even, perhaps, that it conversely coloured Francis’s memories. ‘When he sat still he …
- … Vanity Fair ’s friendly and convincing likeness of Darwin took its place in a long series of colour …
- … by a motto rather than by his name – in the case of Darwin (‘Men of the Day, No. 33’) it was …
- … were intermingled with those of royals and aristocrats. Darwin himself, no longer a controversial or …
- … evidently thought that Pellegrini would be chosen to draw Darwin, assuring the latter that this …
- … House there is a copy of the Vanity Fair caricature of Darwin paired in a single mount and frame …
- … 1873) (EH88202629). A printed caption has been added: below Darwin we read, ‘You know we all sprang …
- … further.’ physical location Darwin archive, Cambridge University Library. Other …
- … the former. date of creation September 1871 computer-readable date c.1871-06 …
- … and bibliography Vanity Fair , no. 152 (30 Sept. 1871), p. 107. Letter from John Murray to …
Darwin in letters, 1869: Forward on all fronts
Summary
At the start of 1869, Darwin was hard at work making changes and additions for a fifth edition of Origin. He may have resented the interruption to his work on sexual selection and human evolution, but he spent forty-six days on the task. Much of the…
Matches: 28 hits
- … At the start of 1869, Darwin was hard at work making changes and additions for a fifth edition of …
- … appeared at the end of 1866 and had told his cousin William Darwin Fox, ‘My work will have to stop a …
- … material on emotional expression. Yet the scope of Darwin’s interests remained extremely broad, and …
- … plants, and earthworms, subjects that had exercised Darwin for decades, and that would continue to …
- … Carl von Nägeli and perfectibility Darwin’s most substantial addition to Origin was a …
- … a Swiss botanist and professor at Munich (Nägeli 1865). Darwin had considered Nägeli’s paper …
- … principal engine of change in the development of species. Darwin correctly assessed Nägeli’s theory …
- … in most morphological features (Nägeli 1865, p. 29). Darwin sent a manuscript of his response (now …
- … are & must be morphological’. The comment highlights Darwin’s apparent confusion about Nägeli’s …
- … ‘purely morphological’. The modern reader may well share Darwin’s uncertainty, but Nägeli evidently …
- … pp. 28–9). In further letters, Hooker tried to provide Darwin with botanical examples he could use …
- … problems of heredity Another important criticism that Darwin sought to address in the fifth …
- … prevailing theory of blending inheritance that Jenkin and Darwin both shared, would tend to be lost …
- … ( Origin 5th ed., pp. 103–4). The terminology that Darwin and others employed in these matters ( …
- … ‘I must have expressed myself atrociously’, Darwin wrote to Alfred Russel Wallace on 2 February , …
- … of Origin was the result of correspondence between Darwin and the geologist James Croll. In the …
- … but it was his theory of alternate ice ages that piqued Darwin’s interest the most. He wrote, ‘this …
- … ( letter to James Croll, 31 January [1869] ). Darwin had argued ( Origin , pp. 377–8) that plant …
- … would always exist. In Origin 5th ed., pp. 450–61, Darwin accounted for the survival of tropical …
- … James Croll, 31 January [1869] ). Croll could not supply Darwin with an estimate of the age of the …
- … ( letter from James Croll, 4 February 1869 ). Darwin did not directly challenge Thomson’s …
- … 19 March [1869] ). Towards Descent Once Darwin had completed revisions of the …
- … and overseas. The dog-breeder George Cupples worked hard on Darwin’s behalf, sending a steady stream …
- … of concern were received for months afterwards. Francis Galton: Hereditary genius and …
- … Emma read aloud from a new book by Darwin’s half-cousin, Francis Galton. The work, Hereditary …
- … is an eminently important difference’ ( letter to Francis Galton, 23 December [1869] ). …
- … of inheritance through experiments on rabbits ( letter from Francis Galton, 11 December 1869 ). …
- … the first to give me freedom of thought’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 24 December 1869 ). …
Fake Darwin: myths and misconceptions
Summary
Many myths have persisted about Darwin's life and work. Here are a few of the more pervasive ones, with full debunking below...
Matches: 1 hits
- … Many myths have persisted about Darwin's life and work. Here are a few of the more pervasive …
Darwin in letters,1870: Human evolution
Summary
The year 1870 is aptly summarised by the brief entry Darwin made in his journal: ‘The whole of the year at work on the Descent of Man & Selection in relation to Sex’. Descent was the culmination of over three decades of observations and reflections on…
Matches: 26 hits
- … The year 1870 is aptly summarised by the brief entry Darwin made in his journal: ‘The whole of the …
- … in relation to Sex’. Always precise in his accounting, Darwin reckoned that he had started writing …
- … gathered on each of these topics was far more extensive than Darwin had anticipated. As a result, …
- … and St George Jackson Mivart, and heated debates sparked by Darwin’s proposed election to the French …
- … Finishing Descent; postponing Expression Darwin began receiving proofs of some of the …
- … ( letter to Albert Günther, 13 January [1870] ). Darwin was still working hard on parts of the …
- … style, the more grateful I shall be’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, [8 February 1870] ). She had …
- … , the latter when she was just eighteen years of age. Darwin clearly expected her to make a …
- … have thought that I shd. turn parson?’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, [8 February 1870] ). Henrietta …
- … so unimportant as the mind of man!’ ( letter from H. E. Darwin, [after 8 February 1870] ). …
- … philanthropist Frances Power Cobbe. At Cobbe’s suggestion, Darwin read some of Immanuel Kant’s …
- … ( letter to F. P. Cobbe, 23 March [1870?] ). Cobbe accused Darwin of smiling in his beard with …
- … as animals: ears Despite Cobbe’s plea, most of Darwin’s scientific attention in 1870 was …
- … fairy in Shakespeare’s A midsummer night’s dream. Darwin obtained a sketch of a human ear from …
- … of a pointed tip projecting inward from the folded margin. Darwin, who had posed for the sculptor in …
- … this volume, letter to Thomas Woolner, 10 March [1870] ). Darwin included Woolner’s sketch in …
- … muscles A more troubling anatomical feature for Darwin was the platysma myoides, a band of …
- … of fright’, and one of his photographs, later used by Darwin in Expression , showed a man whose …
- … furrows radiating on the side of the neck of his son Francis when he was playing the flute. …
- … essays (later revised as Genesis of species (Mivart 1871)), Mivart tried to carve out a position …
- … Darwin received a string of letters from his cousin Francis Galton, reporting on his efforts to …
- … by breaking adjacent veins into one’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 25 June 1870 ). Occasionally …
- … the latest litters has a white forefoot’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 12 May 1870 ). But in …
- … Bruce, about the possibility of inserting a question in the 1871 census about cousin marriage. …
- … an old fellow as I daresay I appear to you Francis completed his studies at Cambridge, …
- … an old fellow as I daresay I appear to you’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, 18 October [1870] ). …
Darwin in letters, 1875: Pulling strings
Summary
‘I am getting sick of insectivorous plants’, Darwin confessed in January 1875. He had worked on the subject intermittently since 1859, and had been steadily engaged on a book manuscript for nine months; January also saw the conclusion of a bitter dispute…
Matches: 25 hits
- … Editions Plants always held an important place in Darwin’s theorising about species, and …
- … his periods of severe illness. Yet on 15 January 1875 , Darwin confessed to his close friend …
- … way to continuous writing and revision, activities that Darwin found less gratifying: ‘I am slaving …
- … bad.’ The process was compounded by the fact that Darwin was also revising another manuscript …
- … coloured stamens.’ At intervals during the year, Darwin was diverted from the onerous task of …
- … zoologist St George Jackson Mivart. In April and early May, Darwin was occupied with a heated …
- … chapter of the controversy involved a slanderous attack upon Darwin’s son George, in an anonymous …
- … on 12 January , breaking off all future communication. Darwin had been supported during the affair …
- … Society of London, and a secretary of the Linnean Society, Darwin’s friends had to find ways of …
- … pp. 16–17). ‘How grandly you have defended me’, Darwin wrote on 6 January , ‘You have also …
- … in public. ‘Without cutting him direct’, he advised Darwin on 7 January , ‘I should avoid him, …
- … & again’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 16 January 1875 ). Darwin had also considered taking up …
- … , ‘I feel now like a pure forgiving Christian!’ Darwin’s ire was not fully spent, however, …
- … in the same Quarterly article that attacked George. Darwin raised the matter at the end of the …
- … to rest, another controversy was brewing. In December 1874, Darwin had been asked to sign a memorial …
- … Hensleigh and Frances Wedgwood. She had corresponded with Darwin about the evolution of the moral …
- … Darwin had become acquainted with Klein when his son Francis was studying medicine in London. Klein …
- … performed on animals in previous years by Darwin’s cousin Francis Galton. These had been …
- … manuscripts and proofs, Darwin now relied heavily on his son Francis, who had made the decision in …
- … wrote, ‘I beg ten thousand pardon & more’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, [ c . February 1875?] …
- … plants , and moved on to Variation 2d ed., Francis signed himself, ‘Your affect son … the …
- … under the authority of the Church. After becoming vicar in 1871, Ffinden had opposed their efforts, …
- … 219.1: 89). The most eminent of Darwin’s guests was Francis, duke of Teck, a German prince …
- … Darwin could not keep up, and on 22 July , he had Francis reply: ‘My Father desires me to say …
- … on 2 December, the same meeting at which Romanes and Francis Darwin were made fellows. But Thiselton …
Darwin in letters, 1882: Nothing too great or too small
Summary
In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and for the first time in decades he was not working on another book. He remained active in botanical research, however. Building on his recent studies in plant…
Matches: 28 hits
- … In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous …
- … for scientific colleagues or their widows facing hardship. Darwin had suffered from poor health …
- … of his scientific friends quickly organised a campaign for Darwin to have greater public recognition …
- … Botanical observation and experiment had long been Darwin’s greatest scientific pleasure. The year …
- … to Fritz Müller, 4 January 1882 ). These were topics that Darwin had been investigating for years, …
- … working at the effects of Carbonate of Ammonia on roots,’ Darwin wrote, ‘the chief result being that …
- … for some hours in a weak solution of C. of Ammonia’. Darwin’s interest in root response and the …
- … London on 6 and 16 March, respectively. In January, Darwin corresponded with George John …
- … letter from Arthur de Souza Corrêa, 28 December 1881 ). Darwin had a long-running interest in such …
- … experiments had been conducted to lend support to Darwin’s theory of pangenesis (see …
- … He was eager to write up the results on Brazilian cane, with Darwin providing a detailed outline: ‘I …
- … at the Linnean Society on 4 May, but not published. Darwin carried on with botanical work in …
- … which are asymmetric, thus facilitating cross-fertilisation. Darwin’s aim, he said, was just to …
- … 3 April 1882 ). Earthworms and evolution Darwin’s last book, Earthworms , had been …
- … Appendix V). The conservative Quarterly Review , owned by Darwin’s publisher John Murray, carried …
- … themselves’ ( Quarterly Review , January 1882, p. 179). Darwin commented at length on the review …
- … at an early age was encouraged by Darwin. He wrote to Francis: ‘I say nothing about the loss to …
- … a small tribute of respect’ (letter from John Lubbock to Francis Darwin, 20 April 1882 (DAR 215: 10n …
- … of ice dams causing glacial lakes was presented by Thomas Francis Jamieson in a paper to the …
- … steps’ ( letter to Alexander Agassiz, 28 August [1871] ; see also Correspondence vol. 19, …
- … names to appear’ ( letter to Louisa Stevenson, 8 April 1871 ). It was Darwin’s name that was …
- … Darwin’s views on eugenics, a term coined by his cousin Francis Galton, were mixed, partly owing to …
- … years of Darwin’s life show his increasing attachment to Francis, as father and son worked together …
- … no one to talk to, I scribble this to you’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, [1 August 1878] ). …
- … who had undertaken observations years earlier. In 1871, he had asked Henry Johnson to observe the …
- … vol. 19, letter to Henry Johnson, 23 December 1871 , and Earthworms , pp. 221–8). Darwin …
- … from Charlotte Papé, 16 July 1875 ). She now addressed Francis, who could best appreciate the …
- … and nothing too small’ (letter from Charlotte Papé to Francis Darwin, 21 April 1882, DAR 215: 7k). …
