Charles Darwin's Beagle Diary

By Keynes Ed, Victoria: Cambridge University Press, 2001, 464 pages, paperback, $39.95. Reviewed by Dianne Williams in the May 2003 issue.

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Charles Darwin (1809-82) is best known to the layman for his scientific contributions to the theory of evolution. A natural scientist, Darwin's path in life was dramatically changed when, as a young university student, he was offered a position as naturalist on board the HMS Beagle in 1831. Before this he had been a young amateur keenly interested in scientific observation of the natural world, heading towards a career in the church. After five years aboard the Beagle the career in the church was forgotten and he built up a reputation as a scientific writer and creative thinker.

Charles Darwin's Beagle Diary is a reproduction of the journal kept by Darwin during his five year voyage on the HMS Beagle. As the journey provided source material for much of his later thinking and writing on all things scientific, his journal provided a sourcebook and basis for later work, in particular his Journal of Researches (1839), for which he used his diary entries and other jotted thoughts and observations collected during the voyage.

And there was plenty of material gathered during a voyage that took in most of the coast of South America, New Zealand, Australia, various islands including the Galapagos, and even Africa.

Diary entry reflections on 'savages' include calling the language of the Tierra Del Fuegans not deserving to be called 'articulate' and akin to the sound of clearing one's throat (p 124) and comparing the difference between 'savage and civilized man' to 'the difference between a wild and tame animal' (p 444). Reflections on the British Empire include: 'To hoist the British flag seems to draw as a certain consequence wealth, prosperity and civilization' (p 446). And there are many, often poetic references to natural phenomena: of mountains: 'the mind, undisturbed by minute details, was filled by the stupendous dimensions of the surrounding masses' (p 444); the glacier: 'leading its blue stream of ice in a bold precipice overhanging the sea' (p 445); earthquake: 'the solid earth ... has oscillated like a thin crust beneath our feet; and in seeing the most beautiful and laboured works of man in a moment overthrown, we feel the insignificance of his boasted power' (p 445).

The enjoyment of spectacular scenery he compares with music in that only those who understand every note will appreciate the full beauty of the whole. To this end, Darwin writes, it would be best to be a botanist 'for in all views plants form the chief embellishment' (p 443), bringing out the full beauty of the natural scenery.

Perhaps of particular interest to Australians, he writes of the NSW colony's crops failing every three years due to a lack of rain (p 398) and colonists complaining of the high prices of housing and rents (p 396) which only goes to show that nothing much changes in Sydney despite the passage of time.

This edition of the diary provides a carefully edited yet faithful reproduction of Darwin's entire journal with its insights into the minutiae of the life of an educated nineteenth century Englishman travelling to exotic locales. For the student of history, it gives interesting cultural insights through the eyes of a contemporary European man. For the student of science, it is the background documentation of a voyage that influenced and changed the life and work of one of the fathers of western science.

The text includes footnotes to explain omissions by the author, often reproducing comments that Darwin himself crossed out in the original text, along with comments from, and references to, Darwin's other writings. The author has been careful to conform as much as possible to the original text including Darwin's often idiosyncratic spellings and has also included the original text page numbers within this text. There is also a comprehensive biographical reference list, very necessary for a long book with such a vast range of in-text references to people. This edition also contains maps and engravings of various places visited by the Beagle.

For a comprehensive insight into Darwin's scientific thought, others of his books might be more suited as they present his insights in a more polished and finished form. But if you are after a behind the scenes look at a voyage that changed the course of Western science, written by an eloquent man, then this is a must read.

Citation

• Dianne Williams. 'Review: Charles Darwin's Beagle Diary by Keynes ed' [online]. Network Review of Books (Perth, Australian Public Intellectual Network), May 2003. Availability: <please cite the web address here> ISSN 1833-0932. [accessed 18 June 2013].

Back Cover Blurb

• In 1831, HMS Beagle left Plymouth on a voyage around the southern coasts of South America, and then to circumnavigate the globe. The ship's geologist and naturalist was Charles Darwin, whose diary here tells the story of one of the most important scientific journeys ever made.

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