Author Archives: BSL
Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Tennyson (1809-1892) is not the last Romantic, but he is the last poet of the nineteenth-century to fully capture, in his early poems, the lyrical spirit of his great predecessors. An early poem like “Timbuctoo” echoes the naturalistic cadences of … Continue reading
Posted in Literary Figures
Tagged Charles Darwin, evolution, poetry, science, Victorian
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Robert Browning (1812-89) Like Tennyson, Browning may not be the last of the Romantic poets, but he is alone among the early Victorians in his appreciation of the natural world in all of its richness, from the “yellowing fennel” (l. … Continue reading
Posted in Literary Figures
Tagged animals, literature, poetry, Romanticism, Victorian
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Titian Peale II (1799-1885) Jennifer Lindbeck, Class of ’98, Dickinson College and Ashton Nichols, Department of English Youngest son (and sixteenth child) of artist and naturalist Charles Willson Peale, Titian Peale II showed an early interest in natural … Continue reading
Posted in Artists & Illustrators
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John James Audubon (1785-1851) Audubon was perhaps the best known illustrator of natural history in the nineteenth century. He was born in Santo Domingo (now Haiti), the illegitimate child of a French planter and sea captain and his Creole mistress. His … Continue reading
Posted in Artists & Illustrators
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Rubens Peale (1784-1865) Emily Arndt, Class of ’13, Dickinson College Rubens Peale was one of sixteen children of artist and naturalist Charles Willson Peale. He was born with poor eyesight, and–unlike most of his brothers–did not originally plan to be … Continue reading
Posted in Artists & Illustrators
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Thomas Bewick (1753-1828) Thomas Bewick (pronounced Beu-ick) is the best known British illustrator of natural history subjects. From early childhood he combined a fascination for drawing with his own detailed observations of the natural world. Bewick claimed that his desire … Continue reading
Posted in Artists & Illustrators
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Charles Willson Peale
Jennifer Lindbeck, Class of ’98, Dickinson College Charles Willson Peale (1741-1827) grew up in Annapolis, Maryland, and was the first of a long line of natural historians and artists. He also became one of the most important painters in … Continue reading
Posted in Artists & Illustrators
Tagged America, art, painting
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Joseph Wright of Derby
Wright of Derby (1734-1792) was one of the most important English painters of the eighteenth century. He linked elements of Romanticism with powerful images of science and technology. His depictions of artificial light on the faces of experimenters and their … Continue reading
Posted in Artists & Illustrators
Tagged art, painting, science
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