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Descent

Summary

There are more than five hundred letters associated with the research and writing of Darwin’s book, Descent of man and selection in relation to sex (Descent). They trace not only the tortuous route to eventual publication, but the development of Darwin’s…

Matches: 21 hits

  • … with the research and writing of Darwin’s book, Descent of man and selection in relation to sex …
  • … cousin marriage , sparking one of the testier passages in Descent;* a doctor’s promising …
  • … probably written around the time of the publication of Descent in 1871 and appear in a clipping …
  • … are by A. F. Hill and entitled 'A little more of Darwin's Descent of Man'.   …
  • … Darwin claimed his reluctance to publish on the ‘origin or descent of man’ was based on the concern …
  • … by Darwin as ‘almost an essay’ and quoted at length in Descent 2: 117-8, to brief answers to a …
  • … research notes for both the first and second editions of Descent and filed a great many letters …
  • … ‘unwomanly’ to ask a man to marry them is quoted in Descent 2: 374. Darwin seized on Reade as a …
  • … of plumage colour to mating success. Darwin referred in Descent to an inconclusive experiment …
  • … ‘ opinion & Wallace’s nearly into harmony ’. (See Descent 1: 404–10.) Sadly we cannot know …
  • … and in person throughout the writing of both editions of Descent . ‘I am undergoing severe …
  • … response from Darwin . On reading the first volume of Descent , Wallace thanked Darwin for the …
  • … Henrietta was abroad in the early stages of the writing of Descent and was sent batches of …
  • … Work by Mr. Darwin’ to consist of three parts: ‘I. The Descent of Man ; II On Sexual Selection …
  • … like to hear that it is selling like mad.— ’ Descent was published on 24 February 1871 …
  • … llustration of the 'Woolnerian tip' from Descent 1: 22 ‘ my new Edit. of …
  • … Henrietta was married by the time the second edition of Descent was in preparation in 1873, and …
  • … was culled for additions to the second editions of both Descent and Expression . Edwin Ray …
  • … touch it again ’.    Endnotes: * Descent 2: 403: ‘When the principles of …
  • … ***The contents of Darwin’s research portfolios for Descent are now in the Darwin Archive at …
  • … ****For more on the publication of, and reactions to, Descent , see Darwin’s Life in Letters: …

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: 9 hits

  • … Francis, to check his Latin translation of a passage of Descent . Evidence suggests that …
  • … editorial help with chapters three and four of Descent of Man . In particular, he seeks her …
  • … 1870] Written shortly before the publication of Descent , Murray tells Darwin that …
  • … Darwin asks Murray to specify which element of Descent he found too coarse. In the process, …
  • … to pass on thanks to Darwin for sending her a copy of Descent . Unfortunately she has not …
  • … Bathoe responds systematically to a close reading of Descent . She offers a range of evidence …
  • … J. S. Henslow’s daughter, Anne, responds to Descent by offering observations and a drawing …
  • … to Darwin’s theory of sexual selection. She has read Descent with absorbing interest but …
  • … critically to Darwin’s theory of sexual difference in Descent . While she agrees that sexual …

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: 17 hits

  • … of his long-awaited book on human evolution,  Descent of man and selection in relation to sex …
  • … the rest of the year was devoted to correspondence about  Descent , as he discussed the details of …
  • … her future happiness combined with a sense of loss. Descent of man As Darwin was …
  • … animals at every level of structure and behaviour. Descent  was published on 24 February, …
  • … 1871) Like his previous book,  Variation ,  Descent  inspired many to write to Darwin …
  • … he might use the photographs in a second edition of  Descent , and enclosed one of himself, adding …
  • … observations on South African butterflies and beetles to  Descent , could not extend Darwin’s …
  • … if anyone c d . say of me.’ After the publication of  Descent , these differences were raised to …
  • … the world, could also redeem the wayward author of  Descent  ( letter from a child of God, [after …
  • … ( letter from Ernst Haeckel, 21 December 1871 ). Descent  was extensively reviewed in …
  • … had cited on the origin of language in animal sounds. In  Descent , Darwin had argued that …
  • … have yielded to the passing temptation of hunting it’ ( Descent  2: 392). Wedgwood, however, …
  • … species  (Mivart 1871a), which appeared just prior to  Descent  in early 1871. ‘I daresay it will …
  • … Expression , and the extensive correspondence about  Descent , Darwin found time to devote to …
  • … In the popular press The publication of  Descent  brought Darwin even more into the public …
  • … prominent brow, and bearded face. It prompted a reader of Descent  to write to him, commenting on …
  • … letter from D. Thomas, [after 11 March 1871] ).  Descent  and its sequel,  Expression , …

Darwin in public and private

Summary

Extracts from Darwin's published works, in particular Descent of man, and selected letters, explore Darwin's views on the operation of sexual selection in humans, and both his publicly and privately expressed views on its practical implications…

Matches: 10 hits

  • … which properly belong to the opposite sex…” The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex …
  • … than woman, and has a more inventive genius…”   Descent (1871), vol. 2, pp. 316 – 317. …
  • … in her greater tenderness and less selfishness…” Descent (1871), vol. 2, pp. 326 – 327. 5 …
  • … or merely the use of the senses and hands….”  Descent (1871), vol. 2, pp. 327. 6) “…Thus …
  • … peacock is in ornamental plumage to the peahen.”   Descent (1871), vol. 2, pp. 328 – 329. …
  • … these qualities chiefly to her adult daughters….”  Descent (1871), vol. 2, p. 329. 8) “Man …
  • … that he should have gained the power of selection…” Descent (1871), vol. 2, pp. 371 – 372. …
  • … for editing a manuscript version of chapter two of Descent on the mental powers of man and lower …
  • … 1870] Written shortly before the publication of Descent , Murray tells Darwin that …
  • … enquiry about statements made about the sexes in Descent . Darwin reasserts his belief that …

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: 15 hits

  • … made in his journal: ‘The whole of the year at work on the Descent of Man & Selection in …
  • … in animals and plants under domestication.  In fact,  Descent  was the culmination of over three …
  • … more extensive than Darwin had anticipated. As a result,  Descent , like  Variation , would …
  • … As he was completing corrections to the final proofs of  Descent  in December, he wrote to his …
  • … to Charles Lyell, 25 December [1870] ). Finishing Descent; postponing Expression …
  • … in 1870 was devoted to the ‘physical’ side of human descent. On 7 March 1870, Darwin made a note on …
  • … 10 March [1870] ). Darwin included Woolner’s sketch in  Descent , and discussed the ‘tip’ as a …
  • … While Darwin was still revising his manuscript of  Descent , the public debate over human …
  • … publication. Darwin joked about Wallace’s own intellectual descent: I groan over Man – …
  • … Wallace had communicated his own version of the theory of descent by natural selection in a letter …
  • … and ape anatomy, hoping to cite Mivart as an authority in  Descent.  Mivart’s reply, however, …
  • … 22 April 1870 ). Mivart hinted that his criticism of descent theory was not directed at …
  • … Though Darwin was mostly occupied with the revision of  Descent  and research on expression, his …
  • … 1870 ). Carus, who had already arranged to translate  Descent  into German, assured Darwin that …
  • … Fox, 15 November [1870] ). Fox reassured him, however, that descent from a monkey was no longer so …

Darwin on human evolution

Summary

'I hear that Ladies think it delightful reading, but that it does not do to talk about it, which no doubt promotes the sale.' For the first time online you can now read the full texts of nearly 800 letters Darwin wrote and received during 1871,…

Matches: 5 hits

  • … more than 800 letters during 1871, the year in which Descent of man , his controversial first …
  • … genesis of species , appeared at almost the same time as Descent . Darwin found his criticisms …
  • … laughing. crying grinning pouting &c. &c Once Descent was published, Darwin …
  • … , which he had once hoped to include as a chapter in Descent . By this time he was selecting …
  • … Darwin wrote to her after the publication of  Descent . Horace, Darwin's …

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: 15 hits

  • … working on second editions of  Coral reefs  and  Descent of man ; the rest of the year was …
  • … old ground New editions of  Coral reefs  and  Descent  consumed the first three months of …
  • … in his own second edition (Dana 1875, p. 274). Descent Alongside his revision of  …
  • … of a surprising number of new facts and remarks’ ( Descent  2d ed., p. v). Among the many …
  • … selective practices might influence sex ratios ( Descent  2d ed., p. 258 n. 99). The former bishop …
  • … 1874 ). One of the most significant additions to  Descent  was an eight-page note written …
  • … this controversial topic from the first edition of  Descent  but, because some still doubted the …
  • … H. Huxley, 16 April 1874 ). The second edition of  Descent  was published in November 1874 …
  • … The Mivart affair Before helping Darwin revise  Descent , George had taken up questions of …
  • … reduced population in various cultures had been made in  Descent of man  ( Descent  1: 134). By …
  • … your aid, after his employment of a gentleman to review my Descent of Man, who was notoriously …
  • … was referring to Mivart’s highly critical review of  Descent  ([Mivart] 1871b), which had also …
  • … Ogden Rood, who had been inspired to observe ears by  Descent , and sent a sketch of man he had …
  • … that he had cited as an authority on marriage customs in  Descent  ( see letter John Murray, 9 …
  • … Barbier corrected defects in Moulinié’s translation of  Descent  and a second French edition was …

Descent published

Summary

Darwin publishes Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, his first public statement on human evolution. All 2500 copies were sold in a week.

Matches: 1 hits

  • … Darwin publishes Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, his first public statement …

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: 7 hits

  • … editorial help with chapters three and four of Descent of Man . He seeks her “deep criticisms …
  • … for editing a manuscript version of chapter two of Descent , which was on the mental powers …
  • … volume of sales and positive reception of his book,  Descent . Several reviewers speak of the …
  • … to pass on the job of editing the second edition of  Descent  to Darwin's son George. The …
  • … Darwin offers the work of editing the second edition of  Descent  to his son, George. Darwin …
  • … asks Muller for further assistance with his work on  Descent  and  Expression . …
  • … Darwin offers the work of editing the second edition of  Descent  to his son, George. Darwin …

Gaston de Saporta

Summary

The human-like qualities of great apes have always been a source of scientific and popular fascination, and no less in the Victorian period than in any other. Darwin himself, of course, marshalled similarities in physiology, behaviour and emotional…

Matches: 5 hits

  • … appeared in many of his publications, notably The Descent of Man and  The Expression of …
  • … In 1872, de Saporta wrote to Darwin after reading Descent of Man . In a long letter in which …
  • … 19th-century debate over evolution, de Saporta’s view on Descent suggests that Darwin’s audience …
  • … in some cases only as long as this was not too close a descent. With something as intimate as …
  • … and further reading: Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to …

John Lubbock

Summary

John Lubbock was eight years old when the Darwins moved into the neighbouring property of Down House, Down, Kent; the total of one hundred and seventy surviving letters he went on to exchange with Darwin is a large number considering that the two men lived…

Matches: 6 hits

  • … over a vivisection bill . Contributions to Descent In Descent of man , …
  • … for example on suicide in primitive societies (see  Descent p. 94). But the most important …
  • … species and its development from a single common ancestor ( Descent p. 233).  Lubbock’s …
  • … of civilisation. Darwin used Lubbock's counter-argument in Descent both to support the …
  • … difference. The two men continued to debate this after Descent was published: 'I am …
  • … Primitive marriage which he referred to extensively in Descent , and introduced him to the …

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: 7 hits

  • … year was spent researching and revising chapters for  The descent of man, and selection in relation …
  • … letter to T. H. Huxley, 19 March [1869] ). Towards Descent Once Darwin had …
  • … Gray, 1 June [1869] ), he was able to return to work on  Descent . He continued to receive …
  • … beginning to choose the artists to make engravings for  Descent . Researching emotion …
  • … Expression ), published in 1872, more than a year after  Descent . Natural selection and …
  • … being too modest about his co-authorship of the theory of descent by natural selection: ‘you are the …
  • … his permission for them to bring out his next book ( Descent ). As European and North …

Darwin and dogs

Summary

Darwin was almost always in the company of dogs. Nina, Spark, Pincher, and Shiela. Snow, Dash, Bob, and Bran. The beloved terrier Polly (right). They were Darwin's constant companions at home and in the field, on walks and in sport, in his study and…

Matches: 4 hits

  • … for a short time by himself, barks or howls dismally." ( Descent 1: 74) …
  • … have yielded to the passing temptation of hunting it." ( Descent 2: 392) Darwin argued that …
  • … wanted measures taken to protect animals from cruelty. In Descent , he remarked on the capacity …
  • … must have felt remorse to the last hour of his life." ( Descent 1: 40) …

Darwin and Gender Projects by Harvard Students

Summary

Working in collaboration with Professor Sarah Richardson and Dr Myrna Perez, Darwin Correspondence Project staff developed a customised set of 'Darwin and Gender' themed resources for a course on Gender, Sex and Evolution first taught at Harvard…

Matches: 8 hits

  • … understandings of sex and gender. In his 1871 book, the Descent of Man Darwin argued that women …
  • … said to be intermediate between the child and the man” ( Descent 2: 317). Darwin believed, …
  • … asked Henrietta to help him with the manuscript of The Descent of Man (1871), the very same work …
  • … and editorial eye. Darwin sent the manuscript of the Descent of Man to Henrietta, telling her …
  • … sex played in Darwin’s choice to have her edit the Descent of Man , she offers us a glimpse into …
  • … taken aback by many of the things that Darwin wrote in The Descent of Man . Although he …
  • … statements that Darwin made about women in Descent shaped by the need to please his audience? As …
  • … was the product of his lived experiences of women, of post- Descent debate and the passage of …

Race, Civilization, and Progress

Summary

Darwin's first reflections on human progress were prompted by his experiences in the slave-owning colony of Brazil, and by his encounters with the Yahgan peoples of Tierra del Fuego. Harsh conditions, privation, poor climate, bondage and servitude,…

Matches: 5 hits

  • … , many of Darwin's supporters continued to believe that descent was propelled by an inward …
  • … of the 'higher' intellectual and moral faculties in Descent of Man , he drew on …
  • … unobserved death" when evolution is generally accepted ( Descent 1: 235 ). He also …
  • … a most important element in the success of nations" ( Descent 1: 239 ). The implications …
  • … articles in support of the polygenist theory of human descent. Letter 4933 : …

Benjamin Renshaw

Summary

How much like a monkey is a person? Did our ancestors really swing from trees? Are we descended from apes? By the 1870s, questions like these were on the tip of everyone’s tongue, even though Darwin himself never posed the problem of human evolution in…

Matches: 3 hits

  • … human evolution in quite these terms. Nevertheless, his Descent of Man (1871) dealt directly …
  • … in patterns and degrees of hairiness as markers of human descent and evolution from the “lower …
  • … which was born hairy and remained so during life.” ( Descent , 2, 375) Perhaps Renshaw' …

William B. Bowles

Summary

As a famous figure in the debates surrounding human evolution, Darwin could be something of a lightning rod for eccentric thinkers with their own ideas about his theories. The idea of a “missing link” compelled one such enthusiast to write to him about the…

Matches: 2 hits

  • … together following the publication of Darwin’s  Descent of Man in 1871 in the search for the …
  • … in nature–the very privilege that the ideas contained in Descent of Man threatened to revoke. …

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: 4 hits

  • … humans and animals had important ethical implications. In Descent , he argued that some animals …
  • … perhaps the highest virtue yet attained by ‘man’ (see Descent , pp. 75-7, 101). In his …
  • … ( letter to E. R. Lankester, 22 March [1871] ). In Descent , Darwin described an animal …
  • … must have felt remorse to the last hour of his life’ ( Descent 1: 40). Darwin’s closest …

Darwin on race and gender

Summary

Darwin’s views on race and gender are intertwined, and mingled also with those of class. In Descent of man, he tried to explain the origin of human races, and many of the differences between the sexes, with a single theory: sexual selection. Sexual…

Matches: 6 hits

  • … are intertwined, and mingled also with those of class. In Descent of man , he tried to explain …
  • … that seemed to prevail across the globe. In Descent , Darwin also addressed widely held …
  • … unobserved death’ when evolution was generally accepted ( Descent 1: 235). Racial characteristics …
  • … a most important element in the success of nations’ ( Descent 1: 239). For Darwin, the civilising …
  • … the History of Science 6: 9–23 [in a special issue on ‘Descent of Darwin: race, sex, and human …
  • … January 1882 Further Reading: Darwin, Descent of man (1871), 2: 326–9. …

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: 6 hits

  • … Letters | Selected Readings In Descent of Man , Darwin argued that human …
  • … for Darwin was not purely automatic or unconscious. In Descent , he argued that many animals …
  • … W. E., to Darwin, C. R., [April? 1871] In Descent of man (1: 71) Darwin briefly …
  • … man of letters, John Morley, wrote an anonymous review of Descent of Man in the Pall Mall …
  • … . Darwin thanked her for the book, which he cited in Descent 1: 70--1, and contrasted his …
  • … House). [ available at Darwinonline ] Darwin, Descent of Man , chapter 3. [ available …
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