Victorian Sensation

The Extraordinary Publication, Reception, and Secret Authorship of Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Biological Sciences, Evolution, Other Sciences, History
Cover of the book Victorian Sensation by James A. Secord, University of Chicago Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: James A. Secord ISBN: 9780226158259
Publisher: University of Chicago Press Publication: September 20, 2003
Imprint: University of Chicago Press Language: English
Author: James A. Secord
ISBN: 9780226158259
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication: September 20, 2003
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Language: English

Fiction or philosophy, profound knowledge or shocking heresy? When Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation was published anonymously in 1844, it sparked one of the greatest sensations of the Victorian era. More than a hundred thousand readers were spellbound by its startling vision—an account of the world that extended from the formation of the solar system to the spiritual destiny of humanity. As gripping as a popular novel, Vestiges combined all the current scientific theories in fields ranging from astronomy and geology to psychology and economics. The book was banned, it was damned, it was hailed as the gospel for a new age. This is where our own public controversies about evolution began.

In a pioneering cultural history, James A. Secord uses the story of Vestiges to create a panoramic portrait of life in the early industrial era from the perspective of its readers. We join apprentices in a factory town as they debate the consequences of an evolutionary ancestry. We listen as Prince Albert reads aloud to Queen Victoria from a book that preachers denounced as blasphemy vomited from the mouth of Satan. And we watch as Charles Darwin turns its pages in the flea-ridden British Museum library, fearful for the fate of his own unpublished theory of evolution. Using secret letters, Secord reveals how Vestiges was written and how the anonymity of its author was maintained for forty years. He also takes us behind the scenes to a bustling world of publishers, printers, and booksellers to show how the furor over the book reflected the emerging industrial economy of print.

Beautifully written and based on painstaking research, Victorian Sensation offers a new approach to literary history, the history of reading, and the history of science. Profusely illustrated and full of fascinating stories, it is the most comprehensive account of the making and reception of a book (other than the Bible) ever attempted.

 

Winner of the 2002 Pfizer Award from the History of Science Society

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Fiction or philosophy, profound knowledge or shocking heresy? When Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation was published anonymously in 1844, it sparked one of the greatest sensations of the Victorian era. More than a hundred thousand readers were spellbound by its startling vision—an account of the world that extended from the formation of the solar system to the spiritual destiny of humanity. As gripping as a popular novel, Vestiges combined all the current scientific theories in fields ranging from astronomy and geology to psychology and economics. The book was banned, it was damned, it was hailed as the gospel for a new age. This is where our own public controversies about evolution began.

In a pioneering cultural history, James A. Secord uses the story of Vestiges to create a panoramic portrait of life in the early industrial era from the perspective of its readers. We join apprentices in a factory town as they debate the consequences of an evolutionary ancestry. We listen as Prince Albert reads aloud to Queen Victoria from a book that preachers denounced as blasphemy vomited from the mouth of Satan. And we watch as Charles Darwin turns its pages in the flea-ridden British Museum library, fearful for the fate of his own unpublished theory of evolution. Using secret letters, Secord reveals how Vestiges was written and how the anonymity of its author was maintained for forty years. He also takes us behind the scenes to a bustling world of publishers, printers, and booksellers to show how the furor over the book reflected the emerging industrial economy of print.

Beautifully written and based on painstaking research, Victorian Sensation offers a new approach to literary history, the history of reading, and the history of science. Profusely illustrated and full of fascinating stories, it is the most comprehensive account of the making and reception of a book (other than the Bible) ever attempted.

 

Winner of the 2002 Pfizer Award from the History of Science Society

More books from University of Chicago Press

Cover of the book Writing the World of Policing by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Behind Closed Doors by James A. Secord
Cover of the book The Sex Education Debates by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Lost Mars by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Paul Klee by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Feed-Forward by James A. Secord
Cover of the book The History by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Nothing by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Out of Many, One by James A. Secord
Cover of the book The Book of Leaves by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Foundations of Ecology by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Life Breaks In by James A. Secord
Cover of the book The Chicago Guide to Communicating Science by James A. Secord
Cover of the book Rome Measured and Imagined by James A. Secord
Cover of the book The World the Game Theorists Made by James A. Secord
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy