Materials of the mind : phrenology, race, and the global history of science, 1815-1920 / James Poskett.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Poskett, James, author.

Contributor:

Anne and Joseph Trachtman Memorial Book Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Phrenology.

History.

Phrenology--History.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

vii, 373 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2019.

Summary:

Phrenology was the most popular mental science of the Victorian age. From American senators to Indian social reformers, this new mental science found supporters stretching around the globe. Materials of the Mind tells the story of how phrenology changed the world--and how the world changed phrenology. This is a story of skulls from the Arctic, plaster casts from Haiti, books from Bengal, and letters from the Pacific. Drawing on far-flung museum and archival collections, and addressing sources in six different languages, Materials of the Mind is the first substantial account of science in the nineteenth century as part of global history. It shows how the circulation of material culture underpinned the emergence of a new materialist philosophy of the mind, while also demonstrating how a global approach to history could help us reassess issues such as race, technology, and politics today.

Contents:

Skulls

Casts

Books

Letters

Periodicals

Photographs.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 331-355) and index.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Erpf Fund bookplate.

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Anne and Joseph Trachtman Memorial Book Fund.

ISBN:

9780226626758

022662675X

OCLC:

1051691082