To E. J. Pfeiffer 26 April [1871]1
Down. | Beckenham | Kent. S.E.
April 26
Madam
I am much obliged for your kindness in writing to me.2 I think it wd. have been an advantage if I had used the word fascination, but I intended to express some such idea when I join to charm admire &c, the word excite.—3
I fear that it wd. be very rash to use the illustration of the snake, as very few naturalists believe in snakes having any such power; though I myself am inclined to be a believer.4
Madam | Your obliged servant | Ch. Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Descent: The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex. By Charles Darwin. 2 vols. London: John Murray. 1871.
Summary
Thanks for EJP’s suggestion that it is fascination rather than aesthetic appreciation that drives sexual selection.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-7719F
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Emily Jane Davis/Emily Jane Pfeiffer
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago (Misc. 14)
- Physical description
- ALS 1p
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 7719F,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-7719F.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 19
