- 著者
-
松永 俊男
- 出版者
- 桃山学院大学総合研究所
- 雑誌
- 人間文化研究 = Journal of Humanities Research,St.Andrew's University (ISSN:21889031)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.16, pp.39-65, 2022-02-23
In 1859, Charles Darwin published Origin of Species as the abstract ofthe Big Species Book. He published revised editions of the Origin fivetimes, 2nd ed.( 1860), 3rd ed.( 1861), 4th ed.( 1866), 5th ed.( 1869), and6th ed.( 1872). In this paper, differences of formats over the six editionsare described, and alterations of Darwin’s attitude toward writing andrevising the Origin are investigated by analysing the correspondenceof Darwin with John Murray, Charles Lyell, Thomas Henry Huxley andothers. In writing the 1st ed. and the 2nd ed., Darwin wanted to complete theBig Book. He showed unwillingness to devote time to writing the Origin.But at the stage of the 3rd ed., he gave up the idea of completing the BigBook and decided to expand upon his theory of the biological evolutionthrough the Origin. After ten years from the 1st ed., Darwin’s idea of the branching evolutionfrom a common ancestor had been widely acknowledged. In theconcluding chapter of the 6th ed., Darwin states, “Now things are whollychanged, and almost every naturalist admits the great principle ofevolution.” (p. 424). This is Darwin’s declaration of victory. The mostimportant object of the Origin had been accomplished. After the 6th ed.,therefore, Darwin did not try to revise the Origin, and concentrated hisenergy on studying botany. The 6th ed. was published as a cheap edition. The appearance of the6th ed. was markedly different from the previous editions. The formatfrom the 1st ed. to 4th ed. was post octavo. The 5th ed. was crown octavo. The 6th ed. was shorter and narrower than the 5th ed. The types ofthe text in the previous editions were 10-point, but 8-point in the 6th ed.In the previous editions, texts were 35 lines in a page, but 45 lines in the6th ed. The previous editions are regarded as fair specimens of Victoriantypography. But the 6th ed. is difficult to read. From the 1st ed. to 4th ed., the price of the Origin was 14s. The 5thed. was 15s. The 6th ed. was half of the 5th ed., i.e., 7s6d. The previouseditions were type printing and were never reprinted. The 6th ed. wasstereotype printing and was reprinted almost annually. After the Education Act of 1870, the readership of England was enlarged.Murray’s objective in publishing the cheap edition was for thenew readership. The 6th ed. sold well, but it is probable that many peoplewere kept from reading the book by its unattractive appearance. Now the Origin has become a classical book of science and has beenpublished in various forms in various languages. However, it is rarethat the book is read thoroughly. The Origin is the typical book that is bought but not read.