Charles Robert Darwin was a man of many hats. He was a friend,
colleague, son, father, husband; but above all, he was a naturalist. Through his dedication and perseverance did he manage
to, in less than a generation, establish the theory of evolution as
a fact in peoples' minds. In fact, '[t]oday it is almost impossible for us to return, even momentarily, to the pre-Darwinian
atmosphere and attitude' (West 323). Darwin formed the basis of his
theory during the voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle, on which vessel he
was posted as it travelled around the globe. During that five-year
span, this young man saw foliage, creatures, cultures that he had
never known first-hand before. He was exposed to environments that
not many of his contemporaries saw and lived the life that few did.
Was his epic journey merely a series of trips to strange and exotic
lands, or was Darwin affected by his experiences in more profound
ways?
Charles Darwin was born on February 12, 1809; the same day
that another great man, Abraham Lincoln, was born.
Charles Darwin. 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or ...
Charles Robert Darwin. A copy made by John Collier...
HMS Beagle at Tierra del Fuego (painted by Conrad ...He was no child
prodigy; he 'was considered by all [his] masters and by [his] Father as a very ordinary boy, rather below the common standard in
intellect' (Barlow Voyage 28). The one trait in him that stands
out in his formative years is a taste for the outdoors; he loved to
gather
shells, seals, franks, coins, and minerals. The passion for collecting, which leads a man to be a systemic naturalist, a virtuoso, or a miser, was very strong in [him] and was clearly
innate, as none of [his] sisters and brother ever had this taste. (Barlow Autobiography 23)
He grew up in Shrewsbury, and attended the local grammar-school there. After graduating, he entered Edinburgh University with the intent of studying medicine,