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List of correspondents
Summary
Below is a list of Darwin's correspondents with the number of letters for each one. Click on a name to see the letters Darwin exchanged with that correspondent. "A child of God" (1) Abberley,…
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: 24 hits
- … The year 1871 was an extremely busy and productive one for Darwin, seeing the publication of his …
- … 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 …
- … letter from J. D. Hooker, 26 March 1871 ). The profits for Darwin were considerable. After …
- … and the heavy use of their arms and legs ( letter from C. L. Bernays, 25 February 1871 ). Samples …
- … is a thing which I sh d feel very proud of, if anyone c d . say of me.’ After the publication …
- … was achieved through ‘the medium of opinion, positive law &c’, and transmitted by culture, not …
- … in the world except. laughing. crying grinning pouting &c. &c’, he wrote to Hooker on 21 …
- … the mind on the circulation of the blood. The physiologist Michael Foster offered a lengthy …
- … that could then produce physiological changes ( letter from Michael Foster, 4 June [1871] ). …
- … so giddy I can hardly sit up, so no more’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 4 August [1871] ). On 23 …
- … in natural history. He obtained a bottle of curare from Michael Foster in June. Curare was a …
- … work on organisms without a nervous system ( letter from Michael Foster, [26 June 1871] ). …
- … annually on an acre of land at 16 tons (letter from L. C. Wedgwood, [20 November 1871] ). He also …
- … ( letter to Asa Gray, 16 July [1871] , letter to S. R. S. Norton, 23 November [1871] ). …
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: 22 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 …
- … during prolonged intervals’ ( letter to D. T. Gardner, [ c . 27 August 1874] ). The death of a …
- … 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 …
- … Descent was published in November 1874 ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). Though …
- … on subsequent print runs would be very good ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). …
- … in a few hours dissolve the hardest cartilage, bone & meat &c. &c.’ ( letter to W. D. …
- … whether at the ‘close of the putrefaction of flesh, skin &c, any substance is produced before …
- … details of an Australian variety of sundew ( letter from T. C. Copland, 23 June 1874 ). …
- … Dohrn, 16 April and 9 August 1874 ). Darwin also helped Michael Foster to prepare a printed appeal …
- … Sharpe for promotion at the British Museum ( letter to R. B. Sharpe, 24 November [1874] ). He …
- … head that M r Spencer’s terms of equilibration &c always bother me & make everything less …
- … to work in the physiological laboratory established by Michael Foster. He then studied under John …
Darwin in letters, 1876: In the midst of life
Summary
1876 was the year in which the Darwins became grandparents for the first time. And tragically lost their daughter-in-law, Amy, who died just days after her son's birth. All the letters from 1876 are now published in volume 24 of The Correspondence…
Matches: 22 hits
- … The year 1876 started out sedately enough with Darwin working on the first draft of his book on the …
- … games. ‘I have won, hurrah, hurrah, 2795 games’, Darwin boasted; ‘my wife … poor creature, has won …
- … regarding the ailments that were so much a feature of Darwin family life. But the calm was not to …
- … four days later. ‘I cannot bear to think of the future’, Darwin confessed to William on 11 …
- … once, the labour of checking proofs proved a blessing, as Darwin sought solace for the loss of his …
- … and his baby son Bernard now part of the household, and Darwin recasting his work on dimorphic and …
- … had involved much time and effort the previous year, and Darwin clearly wanted to focus his …
- … of the second edition of Climbing plants ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 23 February 1876 ). When …
- … single-volume edition titled Geological observations , Darwin resisted making any revisions at …
- … volume, Coral reefs , already in its second edition. Darwin was nevertheless ‘firmly resolved not …
- … meticulous correction of errors in the German editions made Darwin less anxious about correcting the …
- … to Carus. ( Letter to J. V. Carus, 24 April 1876. ) Darwin focused instead on the second …
- … concentrated on the ‘means of crossing’, was seen by Darwin as the companion to Cross and self …
- … return to old work than part of the future work outlined by Darwin in his ‘little Autobiography’ ( …
- … holiday after finishing Cross and self fertilisation , Darwin took up the suggestion made by a …
- … effected by his forthcoming pamphlet, Darwin confounded (C. O’Shaughnessy 1876), which, he …
- … and who had succeeded in giving him pain ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 17 June 1876 ). Although …
- … Darwin declared to his father on 31 May . The physiologist Michael Foster, according to George, …
- … year’s experiments’ ( letter from G. J. Romanes, [ c . 19 March 1876] ). A less welcome reaction …
- … the referee (whom he knew to be the Cambridge physiologist Michael Foster), he requested an abstract …
- … because of a ‘long and terrible illness’ ( letter to C. S. Wedgwood, 20 April 1876 ). By the time …
- … in harmony with yours’ ( letter from George Henslow, [ c. 7 December 1876] ). A more typical …
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 …
- … nodding vertically Blair, R.H. 11 July …
- … Fuegians Brooke, C.A.J. 30 Nov 1870 …
- … Dyaks Brooke, C.A.J. 30 April 1871 …
- … Southampton, England letter to W.E. Darwin shrugging/pouting of …
- … blushing Darwin, Francis 20 June 1867 …
- … Bartlett and S. Sutton Darwin, Francis …
- … pouting Darwin, W.E. [after 29 March 1868] …
- … blushing in blind students Darwin, W.E. [7 …
- … blushing Darwin, W.E. [22? April 1868] …
- … to expressions queries Foster, Michael 4 …
- … Reade, Winwood W. [c.8 or 9 Apr 1870] Accra, West …
- … in Hottentots Smyth, R. Brough 13 Aug 1868 …
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: 23 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 …
- … about it, else I shall not sleep to-night’ ( letter to E. R. Lankester, 22 March [1871] ). In …
- … to the last hour of his life’ ( Descent 1: 40). Darwin’s closest encounter with …
- … on rabbits. The investigation was partly aimed at testing Darwin’s ‘hypothesis of pangenesis’, which …
- … 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 …
- … no longer look after the rabbits (many died from the cold), Darwin offered to give the poor …
- … 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 …
- … John Scott Burdon Sanderson, Thomas Lauder Brunton, Michael Foster, and Edward Emanuel Klein, all of …
- … 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 …
- … of which we can now see the bearings in regard to health &c, I look at as puerile. Darwin …
- … 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 …
What is an experiment?
Summary
Darwin is not usually regarded as an experimenter, but rather as an astute observer and a grand theorist. His early career seems to confirm this. He began with detailed note-taking, collecting and cataloguing on the Beagle, and edited a descriptive zoology…
Matches: 20 hits
- … Darwin is not usually regarded as an experimenter, but rather as an astute …
- … was of course kept secret and worked upon for decades, as Darwin collected ‘all kinds of facts’ …
- … and acquire specimens for his own use. A portrait of Darwin in 1849 shows him with a specimen …
- … rather than experimentation. According to this view, Darwin was a ‘philosophical naturalist’ whose …
- … than morphological affinity. The two-fold division of Darwin’s science between observation …
- … authorities who could do the more advanced work of theory. Darwin contributed to this movement, …
- … institutional heads like Joseph Dalton Hooker and Asa Gray. Darwin adopted a perspective of great …
- … publications. The final picture that we then have of Darwin is that of a gentleman naturalist, able …
- … a tradition on the wane, and it was gradually eclipsed in Darwin’s own lifetime by the more …
- … is the sharp distinction between observation and theory. Darwin would be the first to defend the …
- … with a curb on make far the best observers’ ( letter to C. H. L. Woodd , 4 March 1850 ). He made …
- … there is no good & original observation’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 22 December 1857 ). Much …
- … that were made to further substantiate evolutionary theory. Darwin was also greatly heartened by the …
- … a highly controlled space with specialized equipment. In Darwin’s day this was by no means the case. …
- … sometimes to refer to naturally occurring phenomena. Darwin clearly regarded many of his domestic …
- … miniature (small plots of land). Experimentation in Darwin’s day was not the monopoly of …
- … and poultry fanciers, landowners, architects, and writers. Darwin sought the advice of an engineer …
- … Scott). In his choice of correspondents and collaborators, Darwin valued patience, caution, and …
- … experimental physiologists such as John Burdon Sanderson and Michael Foster. A final feature …
- … over time, detailed observation and experimental work became Darwin’s driving passion, his greatest …
