Hereditary Genius and Inquiries Into Human Faculty and Its Development

by Francis Galton

Text extracted from opening pages of book: HEEEDITAEY GENIUS AN INQUIRY INTO ITS LAWS AND CONSEQUENCES BY FEANCIS GALTON, F. E. S., ETC. ILontion MACMILLAN AND CO. AND NEW YORK 1892 Tht night of Translation and Reproduction is Mes& rved iCHAiin CLAY ANI> SONS, LIMITI. U LONDON AM) BUNiJAY First Edition ( vo) l. H> 0 Second Edition ( Extra Crown Ivo) ISC2 PREFACE TO THE OEIGINAL EDITION THE idea of investigating the subject of hereditary genius occurred to me during the course of a purely ethnological inquiry, into the mental peculiarities of different races; when the fact, that characteristics cling to families, was so frequently forced on my notice as to induce me to pay especial attention to that branch of the subject. I began by thinking over the dispositions and achievements of my contemporaries at school, at college, and in after life, and was surprised to find how frequently ability seemed to go by descent. Then I made a cursory examination into the kindred of about four hundred illustrious men of all periods of history, and the results were such, in my own opinion, as completely to establish the theory that genius was hereditary, under limitations that required to be investigated. Thereupon I set to work to gather a large amount of carefully selected biographical data, and in the meantime wrote two articles on the subject, which appeared in Macmilla'ris Magazine in June and in August, 1865. I also attacked the subject from many different sides and sometimes with very minute inquiries, because it was long before the methods I finally adopted were matured. I mention all this, to show that the foundation PREFACE TO THE ORIGINAL EDITION for my theories is broader than appears in thebook, and as a partial justification if I have occasionally been be trayed into speaking somewhat more confidently than the evidence I have adduced would warrant. I trust the reader will pardon a small percentage of error and inaccuracy, if it be so small as not to affect the general value of my results. No one can hate inaccuracy more than myself, or can have a higher idea of what an author owes to his readers, in respect to precision; but, in a subject like this, it is exceedingly difficult to correct every mistake, and still more so to avoid' omissions. I have often had to run my eyes over many pages of large bio graphical dictionaries and volumes of memoirs to arrive at data, destined to be packed into half a dozen lines, in an appendix to one of my many chapters. The theory of hereditary genius, though usually scouted, has been advocated by a few writers in past as well as in modern times. But I may claim, to be the first to treat the subject in a statistical manner, to arrive at numerical results, and to introduce the law of deviation from an average into discussions on heredity. A great many subjects are discussed in the following pages, which go beyond the primary issue, whether or no genius be hereditary. I could not refuse to consider them, because the bearings of the theory I advocate arc too important to be passed over in silence. PREFATORY CHAPTER TO THE EDITION OF 1892 THIS volume is a reprint of a work published twenty three years ago, which has long been unpurchasable, except at second-hand and at fancy prices. It was a question whether to revise the whole and to bring the information up to date, or simply to reprint it after remedying a few staring errata. The lattercourse has been adopted, because even a few additional data would have made it necessary to recast all the tabulations, while a thorough reconstruction would be a work of greater labour than I can now undertake. At the time when the book was written, the human mind was popularly thought to act independently of natural laws, and to be capable of almost any achieve ment, if compelled to exert itself by a will that had a power of initiation. Even those who had more philosophical habits of thought were far from looking upon the mental faculties of each individual as b

Genres: Psychology, Science, Nonfiction, Genetics, Philosophy, Biology, History

688 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1869

About the author

Sir Francis Galton, FRS was an English Victorian polymath: anthropologist, eugenicist, tropical explorer, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto-geneticist, psychometrician, and statistician. He was knighted in 1909.

Galton produced over 340 papers and books. He also created the statistical concept of correlation and widely promoted regression toward the mean. He was the first to apply statistical methods to the study of human differences and inheritance of intelligence, and introduced the use of questionnaires and surveys for collecting data on human communities, which he needed for genealogical and biographical works and for his anthropometric studies.

He was a pioneer in eugenics, coining the term itself and the phrase "nature versus nurture". His book Hereditary Genius (1869) was the first social scientific attempt to study genius and greatness.

As an investigator of the human mind, he founded psychometrics (the science of measuring mental faculties) and differential psychology and the lexical hypothesis of personality. He devised a method for classifying fingerprints that proved useful in forensic science. He also conducted research on the power of prayer, concluding it had none by its null effects on the longevity of those prayed for.

As the initiator of scientific meteorology, he devised the first weather map, proposed a theory of anticyclones, and was the first to establish a complete record of short-term climatic phenomena on a European scale. He also invented the Galton Whistle for testing differential hearing ability.

He was cousin of Douglas Strutt Galton and half-cousin of Charles Darwin.

Reviews

[Fred R · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't see that the eugenics movement moved much beyond this foundational document, either in politics or in scientific understanding, which is I suppose both a compliment to Galton and a judgment on his successors.

He should have said more about the nephews of Popes, which looked like the most promising piece of evidence in considering the basic nature/nurture issue.

I think implicitly it looks Galton wanted to turn humanity into a super-organism, like an ant-hill or bee hive. This might still be in the cards.

Also, I wanted to add that Galton displays what seems to me a sophisticated understanding of fitness landscapes and "evolution by jerks", even if only in a couple paragraphs near the end.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

with this book Galton founded the field of behavioral genetics, popularized statistics, investigated the correlates of high achievement and gave birth to eugenics-- his version, of course, was non coercive and largely positive-- he proposed encouraging talented young men and women to have children earlier on in life and encouraging the less able to have fewer. A valuable book for anyone interested in the history of science, especially psychometrics, behavioral genetics, and statistics.

[Alberto · Rating 2 out of 5]

Monotony and pedantry, thy name is Galton.

Even more unforgivable, many of his conclusions are truly idiotic.

[Ngee Poo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the easiest of reads, though perhaps presents groundbreaking ideas and thoughts of the author's time.

[Scott Holstad · Rating 2 out of 5]

As advertised. A glimpse into 19th century western European faux-scientific attempts to explain and justify racially superior genes and peoples along a pseudo-Darwinian tract of quasi-logic, notorious for finding a ready audience with early Nazi members, while it continues to influence those that have come along later. As I've often felt when reading and researching such texts, the logic/science rarely holds up under scrutiny, yet I'm not sure if that should always be my focus. Even if such rarely holds up, its influence among certain types has been and remains undeniable and that, I think, is of greater interest and importance to me in my research.

Recommended for researchers desirous of seeing race theory and so many allied ideologies make their way to the people and places that made use of their contents. Of course, of historical and research value. I place little credence in nearly anything, any platform, put forth by this text and those like it but it's still important to read source material just to know why and how you object to such material...

[Ireneusz Pyc · Rating 1 out of 5]

boring like a phone book;
it even resembles a phone book

[Brian Beckner · Rating 1 out of 5]

NO CONTENT- SCAM

Someone was looking to make money and created a book with no content. The book is a scam. Do not buy.

[Adrián P. C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐ OK/Good.