In the Name of Eugenics: Genetics and the Uses of Human Heredity

by Daniel J. Kevles

Overview

Daniel Kevles traces the study and practice of eugenics--the science of "improving" the human species by exploiting theories of heredity--from its inception in the late nineteenth century to its most recent manifestation within the field of genetic engineering. It is rich in narrative, anecdote, attention to human detail, and stories of competition among scientists who have dominated the field.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780307831507
Publisher:	Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/08/2013
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	432
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Daniel Kevles is Stanley Woodward Professor of History and Law at Yale University.

Table of Contents

Preface, 1995

Preface to the Original Edition

I. Francis Galton, Founder of the Faith

II. Karl Pearson for Saint Biometrika

III. Charles Davenport and the Worship of Great Concepts

IV. The Gospel Becomes Popular

V. Deterioration and Deficiency

VI. Measures of Regeneration

VII. Eugenic Enactments

VIII. A Coalition of Critics

IX. False Biology

X. Lionel Penrose and the Colchester Survey

XI. A Reform Eugenics

XII. Brave New Biology

XIII. The Establishment of Human Genetics

XIV. Apogee of the English School

XV. Blood, Big Science, and Biochemistry

XVI. Chromosomes-the Binder's Mistakes

XVII. A New Eugenics

XVIII. Varieties of Presumptuousness

XIX. Songs of Deicide

Notes

Essay on Sources

Acknowledgements

Index

What People are Saying About This

The finest of all books on the history of eugenics.

Stephen Jay Gould

The finest of all books on the history of eugenics.
— Stephen Jay Gould, Harvard University

Editorial Reviews

The finest of all books on the history of eugenics.

Stephen Jay Gould

All the more powerful for confronting folly [with] urbanity and a clear eye.

New Republic - Horace Freeland Judson

A revealing study of the tangled history of the eugenics movement and its relation to the science of human genetics...Kevles makes clear the symbiotic relations between the genuine science of genetics [and] the political programs and prejudices of the eugenicists.

Leon J. Kamin

A lucid and intricate history of eugenics...which has long been the preserve of specialists. Yet an understanding of that history is central to informed debate on issues affecting the public in general and scientists in particular. Kevles's lively and informative book makes that debate possible. It deserves a wide audience.

Scientific American - Diane B. Paul

The historical sweep that [Kevles] brings to bear in this marvellous book should make us ponder over the tenacity of eugenic theories. What does it say about our thought processes and the social structures that foster them? In addition to a gripping text Kevles provides copious notes and an essay on sources. He weaves personal histories into the history of the field so skillfully, blending anecdote, hard science and—albeit in a restricted sense—sociology, all in the correct proportions, all with enviable style and verve, that it is only after putting the book down that you realize you have been instructed while being entertained.

Journal of Genetics - Vidyanand Nanjundiah

The historical sweep that [Kevles] brings to bear in this marvellous book should make us ponder over the tenacity of eugenic theories. What does it say about our thought processes and the social structures that foster them? In addition to a gripping text Kevles provides copious notes and an essay on sources. He weaves personal histories into the history of the field so skillfully, blending anecdote, hard science and—albeit in a restricted sense—sociology, all in the correct proportions, all with enviable style and verve, that it is only after putting the book down that you realize you have been instructed while being entertained.
— Vidyanand Nanjundiah

Journal of Genetics

All the more powerful for confronting folly [with] urbanity and a clear eye.
— Horace Freeland Judson

New Republic

A lucid and intricate history of eugenics...which has long been the preserve of specialists. Yet an understanding of that history is central to informed debate on issues affecting the public in general and scientists in particular. Kevles's lively and informative book makes that debate possible. It deserves a wide audience.
— Diane B. Paul

Scientific American

A revealing study of the tangled history of the eugenics movement and its relation to the science of human genetics...Kevles makes clear the symbiotic relations between the genuine science of genetics [and] the political programs and prejudices of the eugenicists.
— Leon J. Kamin

New York Times Book Review