The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin
The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin is a book published in 1887 edited by Francis Darwin about his father Charles Darwin. It contains a selection of 87 letters from the correspondence of Charles Darwin, an autobiographical chapter written by Charles Darwin for his family, and an essay by Thomas Huxley "On the reception of the 'Origin of Species'".
Book
It was published by Darwin's publisher John Murray.
The autobiographical chapter had begun as recollections, written for his own amusement and for his descendants, initially as 121 pages written between May and August, 1876, and expanded during the remaining six years of his life.[1] It was edited by Francis to remove references to his father's views on religion. These were later reinstated and published as The Autobiography of Charles Darwin in 1958 by Charles's granddaughter (and Francis's niece) Nora Barlow.
The book was the first real biography of Charles Darwin, excepting obituaries, and thus the foundation of the Darwin Industry.
Further volumes of letters followed - More Letters of Charles Darwin in 1903. Charles's wife Emma Darwin's correspondence was published by Charles and Emma's daughter (Frank's sister) Henrietta Litchfield in 1905/1915 as Emma Darwin: A Century of Family Letters.
The book received extensive reviews in The Times[2] and The Manchester Guardian[3]
The book was later described by The Times as "one of the best biographies ever written" and "In the selection and arrangement of the material he [Francis Darwin] was chiefly guided by a wish to portray his father's personal character, and he succeeded in a remarkable degree in giving a true picture of the man and the student, the methods of Darwin's work and the gradual development of his opinions."[4]
Correspondents
Letters to and/or from the following 27 men and one woman are included:
- Louis Agassiz
- H. W. Bates
- H. G. Bronn
- Alphonse Pyramus de Candolle
- W. B. Carpenter
- Emma Darwin (wife and cousin)
- Erasmus Alvey Darwin (brother)
- Thomas Davidson
- William Darwin Fox (cousin)
- Hugh Falconer
- Asa Gray
- J. S. Henslow
- Joseph Dalton Hooker
- Sir Henry Holland, 1st Baronet (cousin)
- Thomas Henry Huxley
- Leonard Jenyns
- Charles Kingsley
- Charles Lyell
- John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury
- Maxwell Masters
- John Murray II
- Joseph Prestwich
- Rev. J. M. Rodwell
- Adam Sedgwick
- Herbert Spencer
- Alfred Russel Wallace
- Frederick Watkins
- H. C. Watson
References
- ^ Barlow, Nora ed. 1958. The autobiography of Charles Darwin 1809-1882. With the original omissions restored. Edited and with appendix and notes by his grand-daughter Nora Barlow. London: Collins. p. 5
- ^ The Times, Saturday, Nov 19, 1887; pg. 7; Issue 32234; col A The Life Of Darwin.
- ^ "Darwin's Life and Letters". The Manchester Guardian. 7 November 1887. ProQuest 482522672.
- ^ The Times, Monday, Sep 21, 1925; pg. 14; Issue 44072; col D
External links
- http://darwin-online.org.uk/EditorialIntroductions/Freeman_LifeandLettersandAutobiography.html
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- Darwin–Wedgwood family
- Education
- Voyage on HMS Beagle
- Inception of theory
- Development of theory
- Publication of theory
- Reactions to On the Origin of Species
- Orchids to Variation
- Descent of Man to Emotions
- Insectivorous Plants to Worms
- Religious views
- Health
- Women
- Portraits of Darwin (caricatures)
- Extracts from Letters to Henslow (1835)
- The Voyage of the Beagle (1839)
- The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs (1842)
- Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle (1838–1843)
- Geological Observations on the Volcanic Islands (1844)
- Geological Observations on South America (1846)
- "On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties" (1858)
- On the Origin of Species (1859)
- Fertilisation of Orchids (1862)
- The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication (1868)
- Natural Selection
- The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (1871)
- The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872)
- Insectivorous Plants (1875)
- On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants (1875)
- The Effects of Cross and Self Fertilisation in the Vegetable Kingdom (1876)
- The Different Forms of Flowers on Plants of the Same Species (1877)
- The Power of Movement in Plants (1880)
- The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms (1881)
- The Autobiography of Charles Darwin (1887)
- Correspondence
- The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, 1887
- More Letters of Charles Darwin, 1903
- List of described taxa
- Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation
- History of evolutionary thought
- Pangenesis
- Darwin Industry
- Commemoration
- Darwinism
- HMS Beagle
- Darwin Medal
- Darwin Awards