Janet Browne to Deliver the 2008 Jospeh H. Hazen Lecture
On 21 May, Janet Browne will speak about Charles Darwin, the subject of her recent book, which won both the National Book Critics Circle Prize and the Heinemann Award. The Hazen Lecture is cosponsored by the History of Science Society and the New York Academy of Sciences. Professor Browne's lecture begins at 6:00 p.m., Room 9206 at the Graduate Center of CUNY, 365 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan. Reception to follow, 7:15-8:00 p.m.; to RSVP for dinner with the speaker following the lecture, contact Joseph Dauben.
“'The advantage of a private income': Charles Darwin, evolutionary theory, and the natural economy of households."
Charles Darwin’s financial affairs have often generated comment but have very rarely been closely examined. This talk focuses on his account books and takes as its theme the links between Darwin’s responsibilities as the head of a large Victorian household and his theory of natural selection. To draw such links reminds us of the importance of family life in Darwin’s intellectual trajectory and illustrates the manner in which social and biographical studies can provide insight into the structure of science.