Article
Alfred Russel Wallace Notes 11: Wallace, Darwin, Education, and the Class Question.
Alfred Russel Wallace Notes
(2020)
Abstract
In a recent paper by John van Wyhe (2020), the issue of class was discussed and whether Wallace came from a “working class” background. As a result of class differences could or should Wallace be considered differently from Darwin, who supposedly came from a higher class? An additional “myth” highlighted was whether Wallace left school, aged 14, due to difficult family financial circumstances. Van Wyhe contends that Darwin and Wallace were both middle class, and Wallace left school at the “normal” school-leaving age. This article shows that both contentions are mistaken. Class in the 19th century was complex and difficult, indeed a developing concept. The idea of a “middle class” was new and within this there was a stratification between the upper and lower middle classes. As for schools and education, there was no set leaving age specified and education was usually determined by class and family finances
Keywords
- social class,
- 19th century education,
- Alfred Russel Wallace,
- Charles Darwin,
- schooling
Disciplines
Publication Date
October 1, 2020
Publisher Statement
Beginning with Note 10, Alfred Russel Wallace Notes is a refereed, irregularly published, note series edited by Charles H. Smith, and available open access through the Western Kentucky University electronic repository.
Citation Information
James D Williams and Charles H Smith. "Alfred Russel Wallace Notes 11: Wallace, Darwin, Education, and the Class Question." Alfred Russel Wallace Notes (2020) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/charles_smith/77/
Creative Commons license
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons CC_BY International License.