Description:
Presents the 250 texts Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), known as the "father of environmentalism," wrote in English, unabridged in their original form
Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), German geographer and naturalist, is well-known for his explorations of the Americas and of Russia, for his ascension of Mount Chimborazo, and for his contributions to the understanding of man-made climate change. Though he is cited today as the "father of ecology or environmentalism," many of his works have not been accessible since his death, especially his numerous papers, articles, and essays published in journals, newspapers, and magazines all over the world. Humboldt's international reception was unparalleled during his time, with publications spanning across five continents in fifteen languages, and his work influenced generations of writers--from Darwin, Poe, Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman to Carpentier, Reyes, Aira, Galeano, and García Márquez. Humboldt's complete corpus consists of 750 individual texts, published in 3,600 versions and translations across more than 1,200 periodicals during his lifetime, with 250 of theses texts appearing in English, mostly published in the United States and the United Kingdom. This two-volume collection presents these English works in their original form. Containing groundbreaking scientific insights into tropical ecosystems, postcolonial societies, and the cultural heritage of indigenous peoples, Humboldt's work not only inspired research within the halls of academia but also informed the discourse of thinkers, writers, and natural scientists worldwide. These volumes make a significant portion of the work of one of the most important figures in the history of science accessible and invites readers to engage with these important contributions to science and society.Brief description: Thomas Nehrlich, born in Berlin in 1984, studied literature in Berlin and Paris. He was a research assistant at the Free University of Berlin and a guest lecturer at California State University Long Beach. He has been teaching at the University of Bern since 2011. He published monographs on punctuation and typography in the prose of Heinrich von Kleist (2012) and on the writings of Alexander von Humboldt and their contribution to the history of science (2021). As a specialist in critical editing, he edited numerous works by Kleist and Humboldt, as well as William Hamilton's Campi Phlegraei. He explored the intersection between literature and book history in theoretical studies on typography and through the novels of Jonathan Safran Foer. Focusing on the social significance of heroism, he published an anthology on the history and theory of superheroes and is currently researching the evolution of post-heroism.
Review Quotes: "What a tremendous collection of articles and essays. Alexander von Humboldt: Writings in English illustrates in the best possible way the vast breadth of his interests - from climate, slavery, and yellow fever to geology, Hebrew poetry and Egyptian antiquities."--Andrea Wulf, author of The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World