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It has been said of Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802) that no one from his day to ours has ever rivaled him in his achievements in such a wide range of fields. One of the foremost physicians of his time, Darwin also had extraordinary scientific insight in physics, chemistry, geology, meteorology, and all aspects of biology-his deepest insight being his evolutionary theory of life. But he failed to convince the world about biological evolution: that was left to his grandson Charles. An enthralling story of scientific genius. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A very engaging biography
Just about all that I knew about Erasmus Darwin before reading this book was that he was Charles Darwin's grandfather and was the author of Zoonomia, a precursor to Charles' theory of evolution. Desmond King-Hele does an excellent job of putting together this comprehensive biography of Erasmus Darwin, basing much of his work on newly-donated material in the British Library. Erasmus was not merely a precuror to his more famous grandson. He was a productive scientist in his own right. One wonders what else Erasmus might have produced if he had not been obliged to work for his living as a physician. His grandson Charles lived off inherited wealth, but his output was limited by his mysterious illness. Not only was Erasmus an accomplished physician and scientist, but he also maintained contact with a wide circle of intellectual friends. And on top of all that he was a brilliant poet, cited as a precursor to the Romantics Wordsworth, Keats, Shelley, and others. Erasmus Darwin was a truly remarkable man and this biography does him fine justice.

Darwinism: a family tradition
Charles Darwin was an indifferent divinity student when he was upbraided by Dr. Robert Grant for overlooking his family's tradition of evolutionary thought, presumably Charles had bespoke himself of some Genesis convention. Erasmus Darwin was one of the great English intellectuals of the past1,000 years, far surpassing the achievements of his grandson.His ideaswere surpressed during the paranoid period of the Napoleon Wars. King-Hele's book takes some of the myth out of Darwinism finding that themodern convention is actually closer to Erasmus's theory than Charles'stheory.Charles wrote a biography of Erasmus giving him his due but thiswas edited by Charles's daughter Henrietta.A very interesting tale abouta seminal issue in modern science.This book is the cornerstone forreaching an understanding that Darwinism is a social movement not anintellectual movement, and is not about to be overthrown by historicalfacts.This book will not likely do well in the market since the educatedpublic loves the old stories and trash science like the Selfish Gene.Itis also interesting to note that Freudism, equally out of date, is alsoimpossible to eradicate, even though it is under general attack.Strangebusiness this. ... Read more

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The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Botany; Natural history; Portland Vase; Portland vase; Portland vases; Poetry; Nature / General; Nature / Plants; Poetry / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh; Science / Life Sciences / Botany; Science / Life Sciences / Evolution; Science / Earth Sciences / Geology; ... Read more

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Erasmus Darwin has often been cited as the most widely talented man of the past 250 years. He excelled in medicine and poetry; was an inventor and wide ranging man of science, and founded several societies. This collection of 460 of his letters, of which over half have never been published, provides an insight into the life of this amazing man. Darwin was famous throughout Britain as a physician; hismedical letters to patients and private letters to his physician son Robert are a rich source for historians of medicine. His lively letters to the 'Lunar Men', Boulton, Watt, Keir and Wedgwood, provide insight into the Industrial Revolution in England. In the 1790s Darwin propounded the idea of biological evolution, although it was his grandson Charles who persuaded people to take it seriously. This unique collection reveals the variety of Erasmus Darwin's talents, and his wide range of important friendships. ... Read more

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In observation of the bicentenary of Erasmus Darwin's death, Cambridge is publishing this collection of personal writings by his grandson Charles.This is the first unabridged publication of a book by Charles Darwin, and it contains a series of illuminating insights into his grandfather's life and work. With quotations from letters and candid comments by Charles Darwin about his books; and free of the conventions of scientific writing; this small volume of personal observations illuminates the life of a distinguished scientist as seen by his accomplished successor. ... Read more

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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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In this lively and original account of psychology`s formative years, the late Edward S. Reed describes the attempts of nineteenth-century thinkers and practitioners to make psychology into a science. Setting psychological developments within the social, religious, and literary contexts of the time, Reed counters the widespread belief that psychology emerged from philosophy and shows that the reverse is true. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Outstanding history of psychology
I had the good fortune to review this for _Library Journal_ and was dismayed to learn of the author's untimely death before I could send a letter of compliments.He tells us how the less scientific "soul" concept got transformed by scientific interests. But he goes by way of Mary Shelly's _Frankenstein_ (1815), which bootlegged a radical psychology that could not have been taught or allowed in church at the time.Frankenstein's creature was dispatched into a hostile world, abused, etc. and paid "humanity" back with monstrous acts.Mary S. was a teenager when she wrote it, and most popular retellings obscure the point that Reed brings forward.
Readers who like this may also want to read Otto Rank's _Psychology and the Soul_ (1930/1998).

Simply excellent
This book is written as an essay, with no footnotes.A bibliographical essay in the appendix serves for documentation.The style is extremely lucid, in spite of the complexity of the intellectual history recountedhere. Immensely instructive, original in the connections established andinformation unearthed, entertaining, marvellous.Can be read as a handbookor as a consecutive narrative (that will hold your attention) ... Read more

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The Botanic Garden. Part II. - Containing the Loves of the Plants. a Poem. - With Philosophical Notes. is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Erasmus Darwin is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of Erasmus Darwin then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more

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Charles Robert Darwin (1809–1882) has been widely recognized since his own time as one of the most influential writers in the history of Western thought. His books were widely read by specialists and the general public, and his influence had been extended by almost continuous public debate over the past 150 years. New York University Press's new paperback edition makes it possible to review Darwin's public literary output as a whole, plus his scientific journal articles, his private notebooks, and his correspondence.

This is complete edition contains all of Darwin's published books, featuring definitive texts recording original pagination with Darwin's indexes retained. The set also features a general introduction and index, and introductions to each volume.

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This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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The Genius of Erasmus Darwin provides insight into the full extent of Erasmus Darwin's exceptional intellect. He is shown to be a major creative thinker and innovator, one of the minds behind the late eighteenth-century industrial revolution, and one of the first, if not the first, to perceive the living world (including humans) as part of a unified evolutionary scenario. The contributions here provide contextual understandings of Erasmus Darwin's thought, as well as studies of particular works and accounts of the later reception of his writings. In this way it is possible to see why the young Samuel Taylor Coleridge was moved to describe Darwin as 'the first literary character in Europe, and the most original-minded man'. Erasmus Darwin, Charles Darwin's grandfather, was one of the leading intellectuals of eighteenth-century England. He was a man with an extraordinary range of interests and activities: he was a doctor, biologist, inventor, poet, linguist, and botanist. He was also a founding member of the Lunar Society, an intellectual community that included such eminent men as James Watt and Josiah Wedgwood. ... Read more

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Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802) had the highest reputation among living English poets during much of the 1790s, through the great success of his long poem in rhyming couplets, The Botanic Garden, published complete in 1792. In this new book Desmond King-Hele shows in convincing detail how Darwin greatly influenced five major English Romantic poets, Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Shelley and Keats, and many other poets of the time, such as Crabbe and Campbell (but not Byron). ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Strange scientific doggerell
Erasmus Darwin's life is fascinating, and his ideas were well ahead of their time, but perhaps the author is a little too flattering about the poetry ... Read more

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This Elibron Classics edition is a facsimile reprint of a 1879 edition by John Murray, London. ... Read more

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In 1804, at a time of industrial, political and intellectual ferment, Anna Seward (1742-1809) published the first biography of "Erasmus Darwin" (1731-1802). Darwin, Charles Darwin's grandfather, was one of Britain's foremost physicians, scientists, poets and observers of nature. Anna Seward was a leading poet, critic and commentator. Both flourished in the effervescent cultural landscape of the late-eighteenth century and made Lichfield a provincial centre for intellectual activity. Throughout her biography, Seward describes encounters with influential figures, including members of the Lunar Society, and explores Darwin's scientific and literary creativity. But her biography is more than a commentary on others: it reveals her complex relationship with Darwin, her love of poetry and the natural landscape, and the personality, challenges and aspirations of an intelligent, passionate and independent woman writer of the early Romantic period. Through an introductory essay and comments on the text, the editors provide a framework in which to understand Seward, Darwin and their times. ... Read more

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Volume: 2General Books publication date: 2009Original publication date: 1806Original Publisher: Printed for J. JohnsonSubjects: BotanyNatural historyNature / GeneralNature / EssaysNature / PlantsScience / Life Sciences / BotanyNotes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free.Excerpt: Where Java's ifle, horizon'd with the floods, Lifts to the fkies her canopy of woods; Pleafed Epidendra climbs the waving pines, And high in heaven the intrepid beauty Ihines, Gives to the tropic breeze her radiant hair, Drinks the bright Ihower, and feeds upon the air. Her brood delighted ftretch their callow wings, As poifed aloft their pendent cradle fwings, Eye the warm fun, the Ipicy zephyr breathe, And gaze unenvious on the world beneath. 400A dafh the waves on India's breezy ftrand, Her flufh'd cheek prefs'd upon her lily hand,Epidendntmjlos curls. 1. 393. Of the dafs of gynandria, or feminine males. This parafite plant is found in Java, and is faid to live on air without taking root in the trees on which it grows; and its flowers referable fpiders. Syft. Veg. a Reichard, Vol. IV. p. 35. By this curious fimilitude the bees and butterflies are fuppofed to be deterred from plundering the neftarics. Se Vifca.Vallisner fits, up-turns her tearful eyes, Calls her loft lover, and upbraids the Ikies; For him fhe breathes the filent figh, forlorn, Each fetting day ; for him each rifmg morn. -- " Bright orbs, that light yon high ethereal plain, " Or bathe your radiant trefles in the main; ' Pale moon, that filver'ft o'er night's fable" brow; -- " For ye were witnefs to his parting vow! 410 " Ye fhelving rocks, dark waves, and founding" fhore, -- " Ye echoed fweet the tender words he fwore! -- Vallifnerla. 1. 403. This ext... ... Read more