Product Description
Begun in 1876 and published posthumously in 1887, The Autobiography of Charles Darwin contains the life and experiences of the man, not only in his own words, but also in the words of his son, Sir Francis Darwin. "My father's autobiographical recollections, given in the present chapter, were written for his children,--and written without any thought that they would ever be published. To many this may seem an impossibility; but those who knew my father will understand how it was not only possible, but natural. The autobiography bears the heading, 'Recollections of the Development of my Mind and Character,' and end with the following note:--'Aug. 3, 1876. This sketch of my life was begun about May 28th at Hopedene (Mr. Hensleigh Wedgwood's house in Surrey.), and since then I have written for nearly an hour on most afternoons.' It will easily be understood that, in a narrative of a personal and intimate kind written for his wife and children, passages should occur which must here be omitted; and I have not thought it necessary to indicate where such omissions are made. It has been found necessary to make a few corrections of obvious verbal slips, but the number of such alterations has been kept down to the minimum.--F.D."

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 21 reviews)

The descent of Mr. Darwin

Reading the memoir that Darwin wrote for his family, two qualities of the man stand out above all others. The first is his intense humanity--indeed, his lovability. He is modestly self-deprecating in a totally uncalculating way; his devotion to his father, wife, and children shines through, as does his compassion for suffering animals; and his reminiscences of childhood, youth, and young adulthood are quaintly idiosyncratic (he doesn't remember and record "big" events so much as funny or curious little ones that lodged in his memory). He comes across as an incredibly decent guy.

Second, he is a scrupulously honest thinker. He abandons his early Christianity (although he admits that he was never very fervent) because his understanding of natural selection rules out the possibility of a Paleyesque divine design in nature, and he rejects the idea of eternal damnation because it seems to him hideously unjust. (The bulk of his religious reflections are found in pp. 85-96.) He is devoted to the empirical method, carefully collecting and collating years and years worth of data before drawing conclusions from them. He especially notes, he tells us, data that seem to run contrary to his hypotheses, because he knows how easy it is to "forget" such inconvenient facts. And he takes great delight in his scientific work. Curious that Darwin laments on at least two occasions that he's lost his youthful taste for poetry, art, and music. His love of the natural world surely is as artistic as scientific.

I highly recommend this autobiography to all persons interested in the on-going fracas over evolution. It goes a long way to revealing the real man too often demonized by polemicists.
October 20, 2008

Darwin's autobiograph is great

This is a wonderful book. It provides an insightful view of Darwin himself, with only light reference to his revelations about nature and evolution. By reading this book, one learns that Darwin was not the dark, confrontational, angry person religious people try to portray him (they are projecting, I think). Rather, Charles Darwin was a man full of life, wonderment, and humor. He was a very sociable humanitarian who cherished his family, children (10!), and associates. Most of all, he had an insatiable thurst for knowledge about nature, and was a complete devotee to the scientific method. His contribution to our understanding of biology is, of course, historic, but he was also a central figure in the immediate functions of the scientific community of his day. His work lead to the realization that religion is myth, but he does not dwell on this, but mentions it in passing. Instead, he writes about the beauty of the diversity and functionality of nature and how Natural Selection has provided such a rich environment.
June 18, 2008

The simplicity of genius

Listening to Charles Darwin talk about his life, from his earliest childhood experiences, proved to me, yet again, that really great people completely lack pomposity and artifice.

Darwin spends barely anytime talking about his great works, he really just sets the scene in which these works took place. And because that scene was so firmly Victorian with society tightly bound by religion and class, you also realise what a brave man he was in pursuing his scientific observations.

This is only a small book, the actual biography I read in a couple of days. This edition was edited by his grand-daughter and in the end notes some space is devoted to a row between Darwin and a Mr Butler - who you may well ask was Butler, its interesting to note how all these other characters fade into history's darkness, whilst the legacy of Darwin's work lives on.

August 01, 2007

A quick, informative, and inspiring read

This autobiography is a fun and easy-to-read journey through the events that made Darwin into a meticulous visionary. It serves as an excellent spark to make any person into a Darwin-enthusiast. Regardless of how you feel about his theory of evolution, Darwin's life experiences as described in this book can teach you to examine the world and everyday occurrences in a new and fascinating way.

Perhaps the most inspiring aspect of this account of Darwin's life was the value that Darwin himself placed, not on conventional means of gathering knowledge (he refers to many of his early university Professors and lectures as wastes of time), but on the people that he met and the questions raised by the world around him. Darwin's observant and inquisitive nature is expressed genuinely in this book and can inspire any reader to share in the sense of wonder that Darwin takes from the simple, everyday interactions with the natural world.
April 12, 2007

The Man Behind the Controversy

Given the amount of attention placed on Darwin's ideas for the last 150 years, it is an interesting new twist to examine the man himself. The aspects of Darwin's life on which he chooses to focus his self-description are, naturally, very revealing. He portrays himself as methodical and extremely devoted to his various passions, be they hunting, beetle-collecting, or writing. It seems that although Darwin was fairly social in his youth, his health precluded many visitors from calling on him later in life; perhaps this gave him time to complete his many works! This is an engaging and entertaining look at the man behind the books that impacted so much in the world of science.
April 12, 2007

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