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November 25, 2008
Why is Darwin always pictured as old?
I'm reading The Moral Animal, a good introduction to the fruits of evolutionary psychology. Much of the book relates to Darwin's experiences and how they relate to the insights into human behavior from evolutionary psychology. The book has several photographs of Darwin throughout his life.
I, like I imagine most Belligerati readers, imagine Darwin as a sage and bearded elder statesman. In fact, just today I saw these paper craft scientists, of which one was the bearded elder Darwin
Papercraft Scientists
And yet, Darwin didn't have a beard for much of his adult life, and he formulated his insight into the origin of the species. Though didn't publish his theory until later in life, he was a famous naturalist long before he published his treaty of evolution. It isn't as though no pictures exist of him as a younger man. Simply check out Darwin's wikipedia page for several pictures of the younger Darwin. Therefore, I am left to wonder why the popular imagination is so focused on a particular depiction of Darwin, and why we couldn't pick his younger looks out of a lineup.
Posted by OneEyedMan at November 25, 2008 8:46 AM
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