Charles Darwin is one of the greatest intellects that mankind has produced. He is also a great communicator and writer. This book was well received by a populist audience in its time. It is still an immensely accessible book. It is at times even poetic.
“Among the scenes which are deeply impressed on my mind, none exceed in sublimity the primeval forests undefaced by the hand of man; whether those of Brazil, where the powers of Life are predominant, or those of Tierra del Fuego, where Death and decay prevail. Both are temples filled with the varied productions of the God of Nature:—no one can stand in these solitudes unmoved, and not feel that there is more in man than the mere breath of his body.”
The book is first, and foremost a travelogue. The HMS Beagle left England just at the end of 1831 for a planned 2 year expedition. The voyage stretched out to almost five years, and circumnavigated the globe. The actual time Darwin spent on the Beagle was Continue reading “The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin”