The Correspondence of Charles Darwin
The Correspondence of Charles Darwin
Frederick Burkhardt, American Council of Learned Societies
James Secord, University of Cambridge
The Editors of the Darwin Correspondence Project
£117.00
GBPThis volume is part of the definitive edition of letters written by and to Charles Darwin, the most celebrated naturalist of the nineteenth century. Notes and appendixes put these fascinating and wide-ranging letters in context, making the letters accessible to both scholars and general readers. Darwin depended on correspondence to collect data from all over the world and to discuss his emerging ideas with scientific colleagues, many of whom he never met in person. The letters are published chronologically: volume 22 includes letters from 1874, the year in which Darwin completed his research on insectivorous plants and published second editions of Descent of Man and Coral Reefs. The year also saw an acrimonious dispute between Darwin and St George Jackson Mivart as a result of an anonymous review the latter had written in which he criticised Darwin's son George.
- Complete transcriptions of more than 650 letters written and received by Charles Darwin in 1874, providing for the first time primary materials of immense value to researchers across a range of disciplines
- Clear and concise explanatory notes make the material easily accessible for both scholars and general readers, and a complete biographical register provides brief notes on people mentioned in the letters
- A narrative introduction gives a concise and highly readable account of Darwin's life in 1874, the year in which he worked on insectivorous plants and published the second edition of Descent of Man
Reviews & endorsements
'Particularly interesting are the early parts of a major row between Darwin and his supporters and the Catholic biologist St George Jackson Mivart. … There is some interesting material here for those interested in the sociology of science. … As always the scholarship is impeccable – difficult handwriting is deciphered, and notes are there to explain arcane points of detail. … there is material here that will forever reward and excite scholars trying to make sense of one of the greatest figures of Western culture. We all owe a huge debt to the late Frederick Buckhardt who had vision and the energy to get this wonderful undertaking off the ground and moving forward to… the point we have reached today.' Michael Ruse, The Quarterly Review of Biology
'… maintains the very high standards of scholarship that we have become accustomed to in the series.' Peter J. Bowler, The British Journal for the History of Science
Product details
March 2015Hardback
9781107088726
904 pages
241 × 163 × 53 mm
1.49kg
40 b/w illus.
Available
Table of Contents
- List of illustrations
- List of letters
- Introduction
- Acknowledgments
- List of provenances
- Note on editorial policy
- Darwin/Wedgwood genealogy
- Abbreviations and symbols
- The Correspondence
- Appendix I. Translations
- Appendix II. Chronology
- Appendix III. Diplomas
- Appendix IV. Presentation lists for Coral reefs, 2nd edition and Descent 2nd edition
- Appendix V. St G. J. Mivart, G. H. Darwin, and the Quarterly Review
- Manuscript alterations and comments
- Biographical register and index to correspondents
- Bibliography
- Notes on manuscript sources
- Index.
