Charles Darwin's Adventures

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Charles Darwin's voyage on the Beagle is perhaps one of the most famous ocean voyages in the history of humanity - but just how much do you really know about it? Even if you read Darwin's own "Voyage of the Beagle," you probably don't know quite as much as you might imagine. A lot occurred during that trip, not all of which is immediately ascertainable from Darwin's text.

That's where Richard Darwin Keynes' Fossils, Finches and Fuegians comes in. The great-grandson of Charles Darwin, Keynes brings together not only Darwin's books, journals, and letters, but also surviving material from Robert FitzRoy, the captain of the Beagle. Take all together, this presents real insight not only on the voyage itself, but also the personalities of Darwin and FitzRoy and the friendship they developed the five years they sailed the ocean together.

Coming from a wealthy family, Charles Darwin had something accessible to few other naturalists: the time and money necessary to actively pursue his studies and research. He could take off for five years on an ocean voyage without having to worry about funds; after that, he could devote the following decades to continuing research that allowed him to develop evolutionary theory.

Although Darwin was eager for the opportunity, his father didn't want him to go - he wanted Charles to take on a more respectable career path. Fortunately he was convinced to change his mind, something Charles at first thought he might regret. Still only twenty-two years old, his first impression of the HMS Beagle was that it looked "more like a wreck than a vessel commissioned to go round the world."

But sail it did, and with Charles Darwin aboard as the ship's naturalist and companion to the captain, Robert FitzRoy. In today's era of supersonic travel, people may tend to forget just how long trips could take in the past. For Darwin and the Beagle, it was five years - five very long years. A better sense for the passage of time is aided by the unique feature of the month and year appearing at the top over every page in Keynes' book.

During those five years, a bare five weeks were taken for the famous stop at the Galapogos Islands. For many, this stop was the apex of the voyage, even to the point where the rest of the trip may be ignored - even though they spent a full two years at Patagonia. While Darwin's discoveries at Galapagos were indeed important, at the time he didn't immediately realize that and didn't even note which islands he took which finches from.

What Keynes' book reveals is just how vital the rest of the trip was. Had Darwin only visited Galapogos, he might not have developed his theory of evolution. Throughout the trip he made a variety of geological and biological observations which were vital to course of his thinking. In New Zealand, Australia, and Tasmania, for example, Darwin observed the devastating consequences to indiginous wildlife when foreign species were introduced, prompting deep reflections on relationship between environmental pressures and survival.

Keynes' book may not be of interest to everyone; those with only a passing curiosity in the life and ideas of Charles Darwin probably won't benefit from reading this. On the other hand, those who do have a specialized interest in this topic will almost certainly want to read Keynes' account of Darwin's life and voyage on the HMS Beagle.