The Spirit of System: Lamarck and Evolutionary Biology

Richard W. Burkhardt, Jr.

Published by Harvard University Press 1977

The Spirit of System

Lamarck and Evolutionary Biology

Richard W. Burkhardt, Jr.

https://doi.org/10.4159/harvard.9780674731363

Overview
Contents

About this book

Jean-Baptiste Lamarck was a biological Janus, at once a highly competent taxonomist in a traditional mold and a bold, almost visionary, philosopher of nature who aspired to contrive an all-embracing "physics of the earth" by sheer force of intellect. Lamarck is generally remembered only for his ideas about the inheritance of acquired characters, ideas he did not originate or take special credit for, ideas that were only one part of his broad theory of evolution. In this, the first modern book-length study of Lamarck, Richard Burkhardt examines the origin and development of Lamarck's theory of organic evolution, the major theory prior to Darwin.

Author / Editor information

Burkhardt Richard :

Richard W. Burkhardt, Jr., is Professor of History Emeritus, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Reviews

It is a great relief to have at last a good book on Lamarck in English, neither partisan through patriotism, nor distorted by dislike of Darwin. Burkhardt gives us an excellent introduction to Lamarck, his contemporaries and predecessors, and to the scientific bodies and institutions in revolutionary Paris...Exceptionally well written.

Topics

General Interest

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
FIGURES Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xxxii
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
CHAPTER ONE Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, Naturalist-Philosopher Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	13
CHAPTER TWO The Background to Lamarck's Biological Thought Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	46
CHAPTER THREE Eighteenth-Century Views of Organic Mutability Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	76
CHAPTER FOUR The Preoccupations of the New Professor: Chemistry, Meteorology, and Geology Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	94
CHAPTER FIVE Invertebrate Zoology and the Inspiration of Lamarck's Evolutionary Views Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	115
CHAPTER SIX Lamarck's Theory of Evolution Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	143
CHAPTER SEVEN The Frustrations and Consolations of the Naturalist-Philosopher Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	186
NOTES, BIBLIOGRAPHY, INDEX
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	221
Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	261
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	281

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Copyright year: 1977
Edition: 2nd printing 1995. Reprint 2014
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Front matter: 40
- Main content: 285
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 17
- Other: 8 halftones, 6 line illustrations
Keywords: Evolution -- History.; Biologists -- France -- Biography.; Lamarck, Jean Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet de, 1744-1829.; SCIENCE / History

eBook

Published: October 1, 2013
ISBN: 9780674731363

Hardcover

Published: February 5, 1977
ISBN: 9780674731455