DARWIN, Erasmus

DARWIN, Erasmus
(1731-1802)
   UK physician, philosopher and poet; grandfather of Charles Darwin (1809-1882). It is for his poetry that ED is of interest to the sf field; in particular, The Botanic Garden: A Poem, in Two Parts; Part 1: The Economy of Vegetation; Part II: The Loves of the Plants (as separate poems 1792 and 1789; 1795) conveys through its wooden but occasionally powerful couplets a serious speculative message about the chronological depth of EVOLUTION, for which he argued in abominable rhyme - examples of his verse can be found in The Stuffed Owl (anth 1930), ed D.B. Wyndham Lewis (1894-1969) and Charles Lee - clearly presaging the revolutionary thoughts of his grandson.ED's prose work Zoonomia: Of the Laws of Organic Life (1796) and the posthumously published poem The Temple of Nature (1802) both extend the argument, with a wealth of technological and scientific imagery. The extent to which science fired ED's imagination, together with his contemporary popularity, make him an important figure in PROTO SCIENCE FICTION and his work an early outstanding success in terms of sf PREDICTION. He belonged to the period when the imagery of science first entered the consciousness of laymen in general.
   JC/PN
   About the author: Erasmus Darwin (1963) by Desmond King-Hele; Brian W. ALDISS discusses ED at length in Trillion Year Spree: The History of Science Fiction (1986) with David WINGROVE.

Science Fiction and Fantasy Encyclopedia. . 2011.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Darwin,Erasmus — Darwin, Erasmus. 1731 1802. British physician, scientist, reformer, and poet whose Zoonomia (1794 1796) anticipated the evolutionary theories of his grandson Charles. * * * …   Universalium

  • Darwin, Erasmus — born Dec. 12, 1731, Elston Hall, Nottinghamshire, Eng. died April 18, 1802, Derby, Derbyshire British physician, grandfather of Charles Darwin and Francis Galton. A freethinker and radical, Darwin often wrote his opinions and scientific treatises …   Universalium

  • Darwin, Erasmus — (1731 1802)    One of the leading intellectuals of eighteenth century England, Erasmus Darwin was a man with a remarkable array of interests and pursuits. The grandfather of Charles Darwin was a respected physician, a well known poet, philosopher …   British and Irish poets

  • Darwin, Erasmus — (12 dic. 1731, Elston Hall, Nottinghamshire, Inglaterra–18 abr. 1802, Derby, Derbyshire). Médico británico, abuelo de Charles Darwin y Francis Galton. Libre pensador y radical, escribió a menudo sus opiniones y tratados científicos en verso. En… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Darwin , Erasmus — (1731–1802) British physician Darwin was born at Elston. He studied medicine at the universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh, obtaining his MB from Cambridge in 1755. Darwin set up practice in Lichfield, where he soon established a reputation such …   Scientists

  • DARWIN, ERASMUS —    physician and natural philosopher, born in Nottinghamshire; studied at Cambridge and Edinburgh; practised medicine in Lichfield, and finally settled in Derby; occupied his mind with the study of fanciful analogies in the different spheres of… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Darwin, Erasmus — (1731 1802)    Poet, physician, and scientist, was b. at Elston, Notts, and ed. at Camb. and at Edin., where he took his degree of M.D. He ultimately settled in Lichfield as a physician, and attained a high professional reputation, so much so… …   Short biographical dictionary of English literature

  • Erasmus Darwin (disambiguation) — Erasmus Darwin may refer to:* Erasmus Darwin I (1731 1802), the physician, poet, etc: grandfather of Charles Robert Darwin * Erasmus Darwin II, also Erasmus Darwin the Younger (1759 1799), the son of Erasmus Darwin, brother of Robert Darwin, and… …   Wikipedia

  • Erasmus Darwin — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Erasmus Darwin …   Wikipedia Español

  • Darwin — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Charles Darwin (1809–1882), Begründer der modernen Evolutionstheorie Bernard Darwin (1876–1961), Enkel von Charles Darwin; britischer Jurist, Sportjournalist und Schriftsteller Charles Galton Darwin… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Darwin [2] — Darwin, Erasmus, engl. Arzt, Naturforscher und didaktischer Dichter, geb. 12. Dez. 1731 in Elton, gest. 18. April 1802 in Derby, entwickelte ein naturwissenschaftliches System in »Zoonomia, or the laws of organic life« (1794 u.ö.; deutsch, 3 Bde …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”