Humboldt’s Youthful Poetry: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Influence

As I read Chapter 2 of Andrea Wulf’s The Invention of Nature, I was interested in what others might think of Humboldt experimenting on burnt bodies. I have read this book called Death's Summer Coat by Brandy Schillace that was pretty interesting; it is about the historical ways in which we have ritually taken care of our dead and how the current Western system is changing some of the traditional ways in which we approach death. I also listened this podcast about the body-snatcher period in London, which was truly fascinating and I highly recommend, called “The Golden Age of Grave-robbing”. This era in history where bodies were commodities post-mortem reminds me of the play/Tim Burton musical Sweeney Todd; in Tim Burton's musical rendition, Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett (who has a bakery below his barber shop) conspire in a series of murders and then get rid of the bodies by cooking them in Mrs. Lovett's pies. It may have been a disturbing time in our history, but we have certainly improved in the ways we study and experiment upon the human body.

I too really enjoyed Goethe and Humboldt's influence on each other. I think Wulf did a really nice job of pointing out the similarities in Goethe's productivity during the times he was collaborating with Humboldt without leaping beyond to bounds of the facts. I truly believe the merits of science and art are deeply intertwined; long before society saw the importance of the quality of wilderness, it saw the merit in detailed and accurate landscape paintings. I think some of the most beautiful sculptures, paintings, and photography are those which seek to portray a snapshot of the real world, but through a sub-creative medium.

Bicycle on Hilton Head Beach

Brooklyn Brownstone Chandelier

Elephant Seal Doodle

Statue of Girl Holding a Seahorse

Humboldt's incorrect assessment of electrical muscle stimulation was an important mention because while he was incorrect, his efforts were still helpful to science. As noted previously in the book, his use of metals in order to elicit a response in organic matter help lead to the discovery of the battery. All well-conducted, well-meaning, and genuine science is Good Science. Science that ends up to be incorrect is not necessarily detrimental to the field. It is Bad Science--where experiments or results are purposefully twisted, altered, or falsified in order to fit a person's particular desire--that is harmful to the profession. For instance, in a podcast I listened to about the history of the Piltdown Man "missing link" hoax, called "Unearthed! Piltdown Man", they mention that this falsified artifact mislead the field of human evolution for 40 years! This could have wasted entire scientific careers, and the artifact was believed for so long because we wanted to find a "missing link" so badly--and wanted that link to come from Britain--that it blinded early papers from investigating the truth behind the original claims. It is because of purposefully deceitful science that certain factions of the public distrust all science, which is very distressing.

Regardless, Humboldt was a great Man of the Enlightenment. Not only did he invent a better mask for his men in the mines, but he indulged in scientific instruments and learning about the systems around him. Also, when we think of a Renaissance man, an intellectually stretched and well trained man comes to mind; which I think we have established in Humboldt's diverse studies (both academic, industrial and extracurricular).

On to South America in the next Humboldt Chapter! Show me that horizon!

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