Darwin, His Daughter, and Human Evolution

by Randal Keynes

The story of the personal tragedy that lay behind Darwin’s revolutionary understanding of man’s place in nature.

Darwin’s eldest daughter Annie died when she was only ten years old. In the writing case are keepsakes of her life that cast precious light on Darwin’s work and on his love for his wife and children. Taking Annie’s story as his starting point Randal Keynes brings together science and humanity in a ground-breaking book that makes a major contribution to our understanding of Charles Darwin.

Randal Keynes, Darwin’s great-great-grandson and the current guardian of Annie’s box, conjures up a world in which great thinkers – including Carlyle, Babbage and George Eliot – were struggling with ideas that were to shake mankind to its core. At the forefront was Darwin himself, whose thinking about evolution and human nature was profoundly influenced by his life with his family, vividly pictured in this intimate portrait of the man and his private world.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Science, History, Evolution, Natural History, Anthropology

Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

The controversy - be there any in the first place - is irrelevant. While reading this book on the plane to England the man sitting next to me asked "Is it for, or against?" "Neither," I responded, "it's a biography."

Randal Keynes is the great-great grandson of Charles Darwin and he deals with the life of his progenitor in an objective, scholarly and warm manner. In an interview with Diane Rehm, Keynes said that he wanted to portray Charles through the lens of family. He achieves this primarily through Darwin's wife Emma, and the death of their ten-year-old daughter, Annie. His devotion to science never eclipsed his supreme devotion to family.

Be you a Christian and a Darwinist naysayer, be sure to develop a keen differentiation between what you have to say about the man's science and what you have to say about the man. Although he spent many years determining that, although he would not deny the existence of a God, he could not subscribe to a belief in Jesus Christ, he was most Christian in character. He had great love for and cared deeply about the welfare of other humans. Outside his work as a scientist and father to ten children he did much to help others help themselves.

Those who are "believers" should not look upon Charles Darwin as an object of wholesale derision. As one of history's most iconic figures Darwin is used as epithet, rude caricature, and source of ill-placed humor. His tender nature was wounded by such treatment, so much so, that he delayed the publication of his "Origin of Species" for years, not wanting to subject himself or his family to the scorn that would surely come.

The natural world fueled his development of intellect. Fatherhood heightened his sense of humanity. Both taught him to see terrestrial beauty in a way most of us cannot conceive. His heart was continually swelled with the beauty of form, relationship, emotion, and filial connection. He cried bitter tears over the death of his daughter Annie. Tears made more bitter by his inability to have faith in a life after the one he knew. Although faith could not offer him comfort, love could, and as father to ten children he certainly had no paucity of love. Charles profoundly appreciated life; whether that life came as gift from a Maker, or as the stunning chance of natural selection.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

მეცნიერების ისტორიაში ალბათ ერთ-ერთი ყველაზე ცნობილი პიროვნება, ყველას გაგვიგია ბავშვობიდანვე და გვინახავს მოხუცი წვეროსანი კაცის სურათი. ამ კაცმა თქვა რომ ჩვენ მაიმუნისგან წარმოვიშვით. ასე იცნობს დარვინს უმეტესობა, ბევრი რელიგიური ადამიანი დარვინს ურჩხულად ხატავს, უსულო მატერიალიზმის დამცევლად და ღმერთის ბუნებიდან გამძვებელად. ბევრი უბრალოდ შეუარცხყოფილია მაიმუნი წინაპრის გამო.
ეს შესანიშნავი წიგნი, ამ ზედაპირული წარმოდგენების მიღმა, იმ მოხუცი კაცის სურათის მიღმა, რომელიც სევდიანად იყურება და გაცნობამდე მხოლოდ მაიმუნისგან ადამიანის წარმოშობის იდეას განასახიერებს, გვანახებს დარვინს როგორც გულისხმიერ ადამიანს. მოსიყვარულე მამას და მეუღლეს.
რენდელ კეინსი დარვინის შთამომავალი ცოცხლად აღწერს ჩარლზის ოჯახურ ცხოვრებას, განცდებს, ტრაგედიასა და სიხარულს. დარვინზე ტრაფარეტული წარმოდგენა, როგორც მხოლოდ წვეროსან ნატურალისტზე, იცვლება და მის უკან ხედავ დარვინს როგორც ახალგაზრდას, ენთუზისტ მეცნიერს, როგორც მამას, მეოჯახეს, ხედავ მის ტკივილს, ტრაგედიას, სიცოცხლის ხალისს, შიშებს, ავადმყოფობებს, რწმენებს, სიყვარულს. კეინსს შესანიშნავად აქვს დახატული დარვინის მრავალშვილიანი ოჯახის ყოველდღიური ცხოვრება. ის ოქროს ხანა რომელიც ალბათ ბევრ ოჯახს აქვს. მხიარულება, შვილების განვითარება გაზრდა და ა.შ. ოქროს ხანა რომელსაც ზოგჯერ ტრაგედიები აბნელებს. დარვინის ყველაზე დიდი ტკივილი მისი 10 წლის ქალიშვილის ენის გარდაცვალებაა, რომელიც სიცოცხლის ბოლომდე მიყვება და განიცდის. ეს წიგნიც გაჟღენთილია ამ სევდით, ფიქრებით, მოგონებებით, გარდაცვლილ შვილზე. მისთვის კიდევ უფრო ძნელია ეს ყველაფერი რადგან არ ჯერა თუ კიდევ ოდესმე კვლავ შევხვდება იქ, სადღაც საიქიოში.
ეს არის ჩარლზის რწმენების ევოლუციაც, სამყარო სრული და გულმოწყალეა თუ სასტიკი და დაუნდობელი? აქვს მიზანი თუ უმიზნო კანონზომიერებებია? გადარჩენისთვის ბრძოლაში ძნელია რაიმე გულისხმიერება და მორალური ძალა იპოვო. ბუნება არავის მხარეს არაა.
არაჩვეულებვრივი იყო, ბევრ რამეს დარვინთან ერთად განვიცდიდი, ვუთანაგრძნობდი და თითქოს ვგრძნობდი იმ გარემოს სადაც ჩარლზის ცხოვრება მიედინებოდა.
ყველაფერი შესანიშნავი და ემოციური იყო, უბრალოდ ჩარლზის შრომაზე და ადამიანის ევოლუციაზე გაცილებით მეტის თქმა შეიძლებოდა.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This account of Darwin alternates between delving into his family life based on correspondence - which was to be expected - and into literature of the time. It read more like a trajedy, depicting a man who adored his wife and children, but after the death of his daughter Anna during which he saw no evidence of a benevolent god but only natural processes, was unable to discuss and connect with them, especially regarding spritual matters. Keynes unveils a picture of a man who was dedicated to his science, so much so that in the end Charles himself wrote that he wished he had made a rule to read at least a poem or short story every week in order to stay in tune with his humanity. As Darwin and his wife Emma were avid readers of poetry and literature together before the death of Anna, the author draws from the writings of Wordsworth, Elliot, Dickens and other contemporaries to illustrate Darwin's philosophical and spiritual struggles.

[Carolyn Fitzpatrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

A better title would have been Darwin, His Daughter, and the Victorian World. It is expected that a book about Darwin would address evolution. This book goes far beyond that, addressing Victorian mores regarding education, breast feeding, animal welfare, and more. Some chapters focus more on Darwin's scientific pursuits, and other focus more on his family. Apparently he was a devoted father, who always had time for his children, but also had painful medical issues that went unresolved throughout his life.

My main complaint is how the book glosses over the plight of children at Darwin's brother in law's Wedgwood factory. There is a brief paragraph with a few quotes from Josiah II about the working conditions not being a big deal because at least the children got to work with their parents. It did not describe the high numbers of children who died and the high numbers of adults who were made very ill due to the lead-based glazes used at the factory. This was well known at the time. Darwin presses charges against a gentleman who mistreated his own horse, unheard of at the time, but apparently had no opinions at all about children dying at his family's factory. This is in contrast to the book's central argument of Darwin as a loving father who was distraught by his own daughter's early death.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest, I didn't know that much about Darwin going into this, only that he was a Victorian biologist who came up with the theory of evolution. So I knew he was important to the study of humanity.

It's devastating to think that he lost a little girl.

Unfortunately, Annie wasn't the only young child to die in the Victorian Age (or any age).

There's a moment in the book where Keynes (a descendant of Darwin) mentions, briefly, a young "watercress" girl - an urchin selling watercress, from the poorest community in London, and I thought OH HERE WE GO - juxtaposition, which is always so fascinating to me. The poorest of the poor compared to the petted and pampered Darwin children.

Except not so fast.

It sounds terrible, but I'd rather read more about the watercress girl - Annie is one little girl from a comfortable family. Isn't that the Victorian Ideal? Family values, goodness, devotion, all that jazz?

But the grittier side of history, the wretched watercress children... that one throwaway note that Keynes happened to throw in, was just as much a part of Victorian society, though usually over looked or romanticized by historians.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent combined personal history and history of an idea of the Darwin family and evolution. Highly recommended.

--

So far, impressive work. Last time I read a book about a historical person written by a descendant, it was weak.

I also wish I'd named my cat after Emma Darwin. Maybe I'll have to start telling people I did. So many excellent Emmas!

[Janice Bridger · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this fascinating as it is a biography written by a descendant of Darwin and telling about Charles from the point of view of his children. It includes lots of family information and centres around the story of his second child Annie who died at the age of 10, probably of tuberculosis. It makes you realise the amount that was not known then eg about bacteria and genetics. Charles speculates on why she died- he knew she could have got the fever from him - but how? It also includes all the many ideas that Charles pondered over such as the climbing tendrils of plants and the burying power of worms. His life ended still with doubts about how things/life may have started, (inorganic into organic) but you realise that the effort and care he put into his work should be emulated by those in powerful positions today.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This biography really touched my heart.

It's good to see Charles Darwin's life as a person, away from the whirlwind of controversy with which he seems to be inevitably (and sometimes unfairly)linked now. He was a complex and deeply affectionate man.

In spite of religious differences that sometimes divided them, Darwin and his wife were a loving partners and parents. They afforded their children a delightful childhood of liveliness, playfulness and affection, charmingly delineated in this book.

Highly recommended.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This offers an in depth insight into Darwin's thought processes as he struggled to reconcile his scientific beliefs with his spiritual ones. As he comes to terms with his theory of evolution and the consequences of revealing this to the wider world, still deeply held within the thralls of religious belief, he is determined to publish. This determination is hindered by his certainty of his research methods, constantly rechecking his methods and outcomes, and his wife's unfaltering religious belief.
Fascinating social history well worth reading.

[Steph Post · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually like this sort of non-fiction, but I pretty disappointed here. The story was rambling and disorganized, making it difficult to stay interested.

[Judith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story about a man who was great in more than one way.

Darwin had several children, including his daughter Annie, who died young. This biography traces his writing of The Origin of Species, his quiet life, his devotion to his family, his struggle with the publication of his book. He comes across as a loving man, husband to a devout wife (but not "religious" in the usual sense himself), and loving father. I felt great warmth through the pages. It is rare that a great scientist is also a devoted family man.

[E.K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't be put off by the title, this is a fascinating descriptions of family life in mid-Victorian England. (Not Dickensian slums, no satanic mills, just the worms turning in pastoral Downe.) Evokes the humanity of Charles Darwin with touching portraits of his wife and children, of loss. Painstakingly researched and referenced. Intertwined with Darwin' intellectual struggles about evolution and man's status the natural world, on religion and the afterlife (or lack of). An important read to understand the zeitgeist of the second half of the 19th century.

[Jennifer G · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter has to write a 10-page Senior term paper about Darwin, so we purchased this book along with several others for references and research material. As far as family relationships, this book covered his family the best. It's a great reference book if you're looking for more in-depth information about this aspect of his life.

[Kayleigh McMillan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A biography of Charles Darwin specifically focusing on how the experience of losing his daughter to TB aged ten helped shape and inform his ideas about natural selection. Whilst at times the detail was a little too intense, this was generally readable and put into context what it meant to question the accepted wisdom around creation theory in the mid 1800s.

[Kennedy Mcgowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eloquent and moving

A remarkable look into another time and into the very human life of an extraordinary individual through the lens of his life as a devoted husband and father as well as a profoundly brilliant thinker and scientist

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty interesting read with lots of family resources available, though it seems like some of the emotional conclusions must have required extrapolation. It is an engaging look at the Darwin home life.

It is also interesting in that it seems like every name from that period knew each other.

[Sandy D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is confusingly titled "Creation" in 2010 (movie tie-in! which is so weird, as I can hardly think of a book less appropriate for making into a movie), and "Annie's Box: Charles Darwin, His Daughter, and Human Evolution" in 2001 when it was first published in the UK.

Anyway, it's a biography by Charles' great-great grandson that emphasizes the Darwins' family life. It was sometimes a bit heavy going, with lots of side trips, including some into Unitarian vs. mainstream Anglican theology, Wordsworth's ideas about nature, the evolution of barnacles, and the discovery of germs and infectious diseases.

The parts about Charles & Emma (his wife) and their family of ten kids were quite good, though, and it sounds like Charles was a wonderful father. Sadly, one of their daughters - Annie - died (probably of TB, the box in the English title is her letterbox, which Keynes discovered amongst some family documents) at age 10, and although the family was quite reserved when remembering her, it is clear this affected them all a great deal. Keynes looks particularly at how Annie's death changed Charles' views on religion, human nature, and evolution.

[Chuck O'Connor · Rating 3 out of 5]

A loving portrait of Charles Darwin and one that is humbling in its description of the man's devotion to family, insatiable curiosity, intellectual charity, his inability to accept the sentiment of revealed religion once he better understood the savagery of nature; and his fear in expressing this insight because of what he imagined the societal implications to be. It fails however to give any insight into the dynamics between Charles and his wife Emma Wedgewood Darwin. Emma never abandoned her Orthodox Christianity even after the brutal death of their daughter to Tuberculosis (which ended Charles's attendance at Church services) nor Charles's increasing agnosticism towards revealed knowledge or a personal creator God. The story would have been carried further if it allowed for an examination of what seems like potential tension between Emma and Darwin as Darwin's dangerous ideas emerged to define how we think of life and humanity within it.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful biography that shows how very much human thought went into Charles Darwin's science and work as well as his own personal life and struggle with physical and emotional maladies, and with his own beliefs, and his concerns about the reception of his eventual publications. His relationship and dialog with his wife Emma is a striking partnership; it at once illustrates the prevailing attitudes toward his field of science and thoughts with the very real fear she had of not reuniting with him after death (in heaven) because of them, as well as their very real love and admiration for each other. I had to lay the book down after reading the chapters that recount his daughter Annie's illness and death to shed tears of my own. I come away from this book having seen several new facets of a human being that I admire, as well as a comprehensive reading list, surprisingly mostly non-science books. I also come away from it a little disappointed by Charles Lyell.

[Melissa Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, thought-provoking account of Darwin's life. (And this is coming from someone who never reads nonfiction or biography!) Starting right before the marriage of Charles and Emma, and continuing until his wife's death, this book focuses on how Darwin's personal relationships affected his beliefs -- especially the deep religious fissure between Charles and his wife, and Charles's inability to overcome the death of his ten-year-old daughter. Keynes effortlessly interweaves Darwin's ideas and his personal views on science, religion, and the human connection, pulling from letters, texts, and journals, to tell the fascinating tale about a quiet man who changed the world. After reading this novel, Darwin is my hero, and I have a newfound respect for biography.

[Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

The biographer sets Darwin and the development of his theories in the social, cultural and intellectual times. I had not known that Darwin was influenced by the writings of Wordsworth, nor that Darwin's observation of Jenny, the first orangutang at a London zoo, and subsequent comparison of the ape's behavior to that of his infant son influenced his theories. The author quotes extensively from letters between Darwin and his wife, and makes the case that Darwin was concerned that publication of his theories would permanently affect his relationship with his beloved wife. I would not have read this without hearing a review on NPR--but I am glad I did.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I found this fascinating. I had been looking for a biography of Darwin, and I'm glad I chose this one. I love how it features Charles' family life as well as his scientific career. However, the author tends to talk about things, in detail, that I felt were irrelevant. Examples: there was two pages about the water cure and its history; paragraphs on what their cousins' house looked like; passages from books written during that time period about various things the Darwins would have experienced, such as what it was like for the children to ride on the train. I think 100 pages could've been taken off the book. I took to skipping over these parts.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author is Darwin's great great grandson and the book is substantially a documentary compiled from Darwin's, his familie's and his assoiates letters and writings.
I feel this is strictly a book for readers with a large interest in the biological sciences and an even greater interest in Darwin himself.
A much better book for the general reader is "Charles and Emma" which I strongly recommend for almost everyone.

[Grayson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a look at the home life of Charles Darwin. It seemed to be that the title promised more than it delivered. The daughter in question, Annie, seemed to be an enigma rather than a beloved special child. There was some interesting stuff about his attitude towards his children and the effect Annie's death had on him, but it didn't seem as tightly tied to his work as the author seemed to think it was. It was an okay book. I'll probably have forgotten I read it in a month, honestly.

[Sue Page · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goodness, it's not often I struggle to read a book, but this was pretty heavy going. The familial connection gives the author a unique viewpoint, but for my taste the book could have delivered more. Its tone reflects the era - slow, sedate, detailed - such a contrast to today's world. There are threads of interest woven throughout, and I learnt a little more of Darwin's character (as opposed to his achievements), but it's certainly not a package that would appeal to a wide audience.

[Susan Arena · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had trouble engaging in the prose in this book. I found it hard to read and had difficulty returning to it. This was a surprise since I was reading it inpreparation of a trip to the Galapagos. I really was hoping for some new information regarding Darwin and his relationships with his family. I finally gave up on the book and quit reading it.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've had this book for years - tried reading it a long time ago and didn't get very far. I saw the movie "Creation" recently which prompted me to give it another go. I again found it difficult to get into, but once I got to the middle I warmed up to it and found Darwin's struggles as he balanced being a father, husband and revolutionary scientist quite touching.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read my share of nonfiction related to Darwin and natural history so I was excited to delve into a nonacademic book illustrating the man and his family. The story was very bogged down by unneccesary tangents and research. The book read like a list of who said what. It was obviously very well researched, however.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

First Darwin bio I've read, and it wasn't the greatest place to start. Keynes has done his research, but the sections where he tries to tie Darwin's family experiences to his work fall flat. Still, an interesting portrait of the family life of a major thinker

[Raul Duma · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing account of one of the greatest scientific who made an turning point in the modern history.
Especially, the death of his beloved daughter represented a critical point but also an instance of genius creation.

Perhaps the best biography of Ch.Darwin.