Darwin under the Microscope

Although Paul Johnson's revisionist assessment of Darwin's career is more muted than most of Johnson's conservative revaluations of important figures, many reviewers find fault with his portrait, accusing him of writing agenda-driven scholarship. The book is polemical, challenging those who have elevated Darwin to status of sage and saint. Johnson uses details from Darwin's life to explain why he was able to become not only leading scientist of his day, but in some ways most influential scientist of all time. Johnson believes Darwin achieved his fame by being keenly observant, relatively intelligent, particularly diligent, and exceptionally lucky. Paul Johnson, Darwin: Portrait of Genius (New York: Viking, 2012), 164 pages, $25.95 cloth. Scholars familiar with Paul Johnson's work know that when terms W like intellectual or genius appear on cover of one of his books, is likely that some revisionist history is in making. His brief monograph on Darwin is no exception. That Johnson could have chutzpah to write such short book about Darwin is something of statement in itself. Studying Darwin's life, his contributions to science, rhetoric he used to convey his findings, and fallout from his revolutionary theories about natural world has occupied hundreds of scholars in disciplines from biology to political theory (with rhetorical theory wedged somewhere in middle, I believe). In year Darwin: Portrait of Genius was published, at least dozen other books about Darwin appeared. That number pales in comparison to total published in 2009, bicentenary of Darwin's birth--more than fifty. Few of these are under two hundred pages, and several exceed five hundred. Johnson's reputation as argumentative sort precedes him. For some he is, as Jonathan Foreman described him in 2009 Wall Street Journal profile, the most celebrated and best-loved British historian in America--at least, Foreman, says, for readers of conservative bent. Since Darwin has been revered for more than century by those who want to write God out of creation story, one should not be surprised to find conservative Johnson taking contrarian view of Darwin's achievements. After all, in his monumental History of American People, Nixon is one of his heroes and Kennedy dismissed as fraud. Though I find that in this study of Darwin Johnson has muted strident conservatism that characterized his assessment of United States in A History of American People (for which historian Pauline Maier excoriated him in New York Times review), there is plenty in Darwin: Portrait of Genius to raise hackles of liberal scholars and scientific purists, as initial reactions demonstrate. Early reviews make one wonder if reviewers read same book. Carl Rollyson, Johnson admirer, says in his Wall Street Journal review that this study follows Johnson's general ideology, viz., it is never permissible to do evil--even in good cause--an axiom of Johnson's hero, Socrates. Following that logic, if Darwin sometimes does evil (even unwittingly) then he must be called to account, even if his devotees object. One might have expected critical review from Michael Flannery, author of biography of Alfred Russel Wallace, Darwin's chief competitor for title Discoverer of Natural Selection. But Flannery is particularly complimentary, calling Johnson's monograph an interesting and valuable brief to ever expanding minority opinion. James Barasch, writing for Tufts University's online news service, offers higher praise, calling book a compelling portrait that raises important new interpretations of Darwin and his work for 21st century. Gene Mirabelli believes Johnson's is balanced portrait, giving Darwin credit for his achievements but holding him responsible for failures that led to sloppy science on occasion and even sorrier support for ideas that would prove inimical to society in succeeding decades. …