Abstract
Biological discussion in the 1920s was inspired by the seemingly limitless potential of genetics and the possibilities for human development; and the debates around it attended simultaneously to the promise and danger of human intervention. At the core of these discussions was the idea of development, what it constituted and how it could be predicted.
Several papers published in the To-day and To-morrow series explore the tensions between optimism and scientific pragmatism, between progress and apparent randomness in development, and between human development and the potential for regression. Turning to the mythological figures of Daedalus, Galatea, and Prometheus — each a creator and visionary — the authors of these essays (Haldane, W.R. Brain, Crookshank, Jennings, Macfie, Bernal, Sullivan) reflect the diversity of ‘Darwinisms’ employed during the early twentieth century and the implications each offered.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.