Re Chris's remarks on Darwin and slavery (below), in which he wrote: > It was *American* slavery that was the main object of his feeling...
I've just finished reading (v. belatedly!) Darwin's "The Voyage of the Beagle" (first published 1839), and on two or three occasions he gives expression to his abhorrence of slavery prompted by his overland journeys in South America. He caught a glimpse of slavery in Brazil, which, unlike the ex-Spanish colonies Peru and Chile that he visited, continued the practice of slavery for several decades after independence. As a postscript to my earlier posting, such was the anti-slave trade sentiment in Britain by 1807 (when the abolition bill was passed in the House of Commons by 114 votes to 15) that, as reported by The Morning Chronicle, the speech of the Solicitor-General, Sir Samuel Romilly, against the trade was greeted by "three distinct and universal cheers". (Unfortunately self-interested opposition to emancipation in British overseas possessions blocked the passage of bills with this aim for another 26 years.) Allen Esterson Former lecturer, Science Department Southwark College, London http://www.esterson.org ********************************************************** Subject: Re: Darwin, Science, and Religion From: "Christopher D. Green" <[email protected]> Date: Fri, 30 Jan 2009 23:32:38 -0500 [email protected] wrote: > It does leave open the question what Desmond and Moore would be going > on about if "Darwin's sacred cause" [the title of their book] was > largely won before he published his _Descent of Man_ in 1871. I haven't read Desmond & Moore's book either, but I think it was true that Darwin was intensely horrified by slavery. There is some material in Janet Browne's biography about this. It was *American* slavery that was the main object of his feeling, which continued on for decades after it had been outlawed by England and France, and took a catastrophic war to finally bring to an end. (My point was, rather, that there is no reason to claim the opposite, that religious figures were particularly supportive of slavery.) As I recall, Darwin regularly discussed the issue of American slavery with his Harvard friend, Asa Gray. Just to add a little extra punch, Darwin's leading opponent among American scientists (and Gray's Harvard colleague), Louis Agassiz, was a defender of the proposition that American slaves were inferior as a race, using his renowned zoological expertise to justify his position. Regards, Chris -- Christopher D. Green Department of Psychology York University Toronto, ON M3J 1P3 Canada --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly ([email protected])
