Cosmos (Humboldt book)
Cosmos: A Sketch of a Physical Description of the Universe (in German Kosmos – Entwurf einer physischen Weltbeschreibung) is an influential treatise on science and nature written by German scientist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt. It began as a lecture series delivered by Humboldt at the University of Berlin, and was published in five volumes between 1845 and 1862 (the fifth was posthumous and completed based on Humboldt's notes). In the first volume, Humboldt paints a general "portrait of nature", describing the physical nature of outer space and the Earth. In the second volume he describes the history of science.[1]
Author
Alexander von Humboldt
German
Widely read by academics and laymen, Cosmos applies the ancient Greek view of the orderliness of the cosmos (the harmony of the universe) to the Earth, suggesting that universal laws apply as well to the apparent chaos of the terrestrial world and that contemplation of nature can yield an awareness of its wholeness and coherence. Humboldt embraced the subjectivity of the observer and "thus ran exactly counter to the developing ideology of science, the objectivity which sought to purify science by removing subjectivity altogether".[2]
Cosmos was influenced by Humboldt's travels and studies, but mainly by his journey throughout the Americas. As he wrote, “it was the discovery of America that planted the seed of the Cosmos.”[3] Due to all of his experience in the field, Humboldt was preeminently qualified for the task to represent the universe in a single work.[1] He had extensive knowledge of many fields of learning, varied experiences as a traveler, and the resources of the scientific and literary world at his disposal.[1]
Cosmos was highly popular when it was released, with the first volume selling out in two months, and the work translated into most European languages. Humboldt wrote in his journal further sketches of volumes of Cosmos titled as Cosmos 1 through 9. These volumes were left with only their draft titles and half-written till Humboldt's death in 1859.[4] Although the natural sciences have diverged from the romantic perspective Humboldt presented in Cosmos, the work is still considered a substantial scientific and literary achievement, having influenced subsequent scientific progress and imparted a unifying perspective to the studies of science, nature and mankind.[4]
Volumes 1-4 of "Cosmos," from 1849-1852
Title page to volume 1 of "Cosmos" (1849)
Table of contents to volume 1 of "Cosmos" (1849)
First pages of volume 1 of "Cosmos" (1849)
In 1828 after the Berlin lectures, Humboldt began formulating his vision in writing. His factual text, heavily loaded with footnotes and references, was sent in proof sheets to all the various specialists for comments and corrections before publication. In this way, he aimed to ensure that what he wrote was both accurate and up-to-date. He continually looked to his friend and literary advisor Varnhagen von Ense for advice in the matter of his style of writing.[4] In total Cosmos took twenty-five years to write.[5]
Humboldt felt as if publishing Cosmos was a race against death. The first volume was published in 1845 when he was seventy-six, the second when he was seventy-eight, the third when he was eighty-one, and the fourth when he was eighty-nine. The fifth volume, however, was only half-written when Humboldt died in 1859 and had to be completed from his notes and provided with an index over a thousand pages long.[4]
Response to Cosmos[edit]
Reception[edit]
Cosmos was considered to be both a scientific and literary achievement, immensely popular among nineteenth-century readers.[1] Although the book bore the daunting subtitle of A Sketch of a Physical Description of the Universe, and had an index that ran to more than 1,000 pages, the first volume sold out in two months, the work was translated into all major languages and sold hundreds of thousands of copies.[9] Humboldt's publisher claimed: "The demand is epoch-making. Book parcels destined for London and St. Petersburg were torn out of our hands by agents who wanted their orders filled for the bookstores in Vienna and Hamburg."[9]
Cosmos largely enhanced Humboldt's reputation in his own lifetime, not only in his own country but throughout Europe and America. Its enthusiastic reception in England, where it came out in the Bohn Scientific Library in a translation by Elizabeth Leeves, particularly surprised him. The reviews were gushing in praise of both the author and his work.[4]
However, some felt he had not done justice to the contribution of modern British scientists and many were quick to point out that Humboldt, who had written so exhaustively about the creation of the universe, failed to ever mention God the Creator.[4]
public domain audiobook at LibriVox (Introduction only)
