What do you think?
Rate this book
The Malay Archipelago #2
The Malay Archipelago Part Two: Scientific Travellers 1790-1877 VIII
First published in 2003. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
544 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1869
About the author
Alfred Russel Wallace
572 books93 followersAlfred Russel Wallace, OM, FRS was a British naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist and biologist. He is best known for independently proposing a theory of natural selection which prompted Charles Darwin to publish his own theory.
Wallace did extensive fieldwork, first in the Amazon River basin and then in the Malay Archipelago, where he identified the Wallace Line that divides Indonesia into two distinct parts, one in which animals closely related to those of Australia are common, and one in which the species are largely of Asian origin. He was considered the 19th century's leading expert on the geographical distribution of animal species and is sometimes called the "father of biogeography". Wallace was one of the leading evolutionary thinkers of the 19th century and made a number of other contributions to the development of evolutionary theory besides being co-discoverer of natural selection. These included the concept of warning colouration in animals, and the Wallace effect, a hypothesis on how natural selection could contribute to speciation by encouraging the development of barriers against hybridization.
Wallace was strongly attracted to unconventional ideas. His advocacy of Spiritualism and his belief in a non-material origin for the higher mental faculties of humans strained his relationship with the scientific establishment, especially with other early proponents of evolution. In addition to his scientific work, he was a social activist who was critical of what he considered to be an unjust social and economic system in 19th-century Britain. His interest in biogeography resulted in his being one of the first prominent scientists to raise concerns over the environmental impact of human activity. Wallace was a prolific author who wrote on both scientific and social issues; his account of his adventures and observations during his explorations in Indonesia and Malaysia, The Malay Archipelago, was one of the most popular and influential journals of scientific exploration published during the 19th century.
Wallace did extensive fieldwork, first in the Amazon River basin and then in the Malay Archipelago, where he identified the Wallace Line that divides Indonesia into two distinct parts, one in which animals closely related to those of Australia are common, and one in which the species are largely of Asian origin. He was considered the 19th century's leading expert on the geographical distribution of animal species and is sometimes called the "father of biogeography". Wallace was one of the leading evolutionary thinkers of the 19th century and made a number of other contributions to the development of evolutionary theory besides being co-discoverer of natural selection. These included the concept of warning colouration in animals, and the Wallace effect, a hypothesis on how natural selection could contribute to speciation by encouraging the development of barriers against hybridization.
Wallace was strongly attracted to unconventional ideas. His advocacy of Spiritualism and his belief in a non-material origin for the higher mental faculties of humans strained his relationship with the scientific establishment, especially with other early proponents of evolution. In addition to his scientific work, he was a social activist who was critical of what he considered to be an unjust social and economic system in 19th-century Britain. His interest in biogeography resulted in his being one of the first prominent scientists to raise concerns over the environmental impact of human activity. Wallace was a prolific author who wrote on both scientific and social issues; his account of his adventures and observations during his explorations in Indonesia and Malaysia, The Malay Archipelago, was one of the most popular and influential journals of scientific exploration published during the 19th century.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 6, 2015
Let me first get out of the way why I didn't give this 5 stars. The simple fact is that it was horrendously edited. I realize it was a group of volunteers who transcribed the original so we could have it for free on Kindle and I applaud and appreciate that. But surely, someone could have at least read it through and edited it correctly. If it wasn't for the editing it would certainly have 5 stars.
This is a fascinating book. In every possible way. One might think that it would be a simple travel journal with a focus only on insects and birds, but it is so very much more than that. It opens a window onto the social and scientific climate of the 1850s in a huge way. From the very casual and nonchalant racism and sexism and superiority complex of the white man, to a bit more self-aware discussion of how his own society fails and is flawed in comparison to the peoples he meets during his travels, how missionaries might be better off evangelizing through action than word, how many of the assumptions of what culture is are wrong.
It is however, also a book about birds and beetles, and butterflies etc. But through the lens of a man who is beyond excited about seeing things that so few Europeans have seen and even fewer have seen through the eyes of a scientist. He discusses the work of his peers, such as Darwin as it relates to his observations, he discusses the reasons for some shortcomings in the work of those who cam before him. And finally he lays out his ideas for the concept of the Wallace Line a hugely important concept in understanding evolution and natural history via geographical/geological concepts.
Its fascinating and powerful to see how much work was done with nothing but observation while trekking through the jungle for years. No microscopes, no genetic studies, no lab, few doctors or medicine, no engine for his boat at the mercy of the nature he studies.
It is partially appealing due to the adventure, partially due to the insight, the discovery of new species, and partially the fact that we have a first hand account of growing of a scientific field. Worth the read. I can only suggest people do, see if you can find a version that has pictures to accompany his descriptions and good editing though, it would make it just that much better.
This is a fascinating book. In every possible way. One might think that it would be a simple travel journal with a focus only on insects and birds, but it is so very much more than that. It opens a window onto the social and scientific climate of the 1850s in a huge way. From the very casual and nonchalant racism and sexism and superiority complex of the white man, to a bit more self-aware discussion of how his own society fails and is flawed in comparison to the peoples he meets during his travels, how missionaries might be better off evangelizing through action than word, how many of the assumptions of what culture is are wrong.
It is however, also a book about birds and beetles, and butterflies etc. But through the lens of a man who is beyond excited about seeing things that so few Europeans have seen and even fewer have seen through the eyes of a scientist. He discusses the work of his peers, such as Darwin as it relates to his observations, he discusses the reasons for some shortcomings in the work of those who cam before him. And finally he lays out his ideas for the concept of the Wallace Line a hugely important concept in understanding evolution and natural history via geographical/geological concepts.
Its fascinating and powerful to see how much work was done with nothing but observation while trekking through the jungle for years. No microscopes, no genetic studies, no lab, few doctors or medicine, no engine for his boat at the mercy of the nature he studies.
It is partially appealing due to the adventure, partially due to the insight, the discovery of new species, and partially the fact that we have a first hand account of growing of a scientific field. Worth the read. I can only suggest people do, see if you can find a version that has pictures to accompany his descriptions and good editing though, it would make it just that much better.
April 27, 2024
I've read this book several times - most recently when I was researching for a Lonely Planet guide that I'd been commissioned to do on Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) - and still consider it one of the most exciting travel classics of all time.
I was lucky enough to walk in Wallace's boot-prints in many parts of Indonesia when I was covering the 15,000km of journeys that was the basis for my Indonesia travel book. I succeeded in finding the house (in Ternate) from which he wrote the famous letter to Darwin. Wallace remains one of the great unsung (relatively speaking at least) heroes of the period and he left behind a book that is so much more readable than the heavy-going Voyage of the Beagle.
I was lucky enough to walk in Wallace's boot-prints in many parts of Indonesia when I was covering the 15,000km of journeys that was the basis for my Indonesia travel book. I succeeded in finding the house (in Ternate) from which he wrote the famous letter to Darwin. Wallace remains one of the great unsung (relatively speaking at least) heroes of the period and he left behind a book that is so much more readable than the heavy-going Voyage of the Beagle.
October 14, 2022
I just couldn't get into it. Rather boring because it just seemed to be a list of what he did each day. I hoped it would be as interesting as Darwin's “Voyage of the Beagle” but it wasn't.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews