Georges Cuvier
Discourse on the Revolutionary Upheavals on the
Surface of the Earth
Historical
Note
Georges Cuvier's
important study Recherches sur les ossemens fossiles des quadrupèdes
[Research on the Fossil Bones of Quadrupeds] was first published in France in
1812. The Discours sur les révolutions du globe [Discourse on the
Revolutionary Upheavals on the Surface of the Earth] was the introduction
to the larger work.
The translation is
based upon the Third French Edition (Paris and Amsterdam, 1825). As Cuvier's
Preface makes clear, the introduction to the earlier work had been translated
into English (in 1813) and German (in 1822), and had added considerably to
Cuvier's international reputation as one of France's most important scientists.
Editions of Cuvier in English and French were sufficiently popular to go
through many editions.
The central argument in the Third Edition is the same
as in the first, and the two texts are at times very similar indeed. However,
the Third Edition is longer and contains a much more extensive discussion of
ancient cultures.
Translator's
Note
Those interested in reading more of Cuvier's work in
English should consult the excellent new book by Martin J. S. Rudwick, Georges
Cuvier, Fossil Bones, and Geological Catastrophes (Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1997).
At the bottom of this page are links to two reviews of
the first English edition of Cuvier's essay.
Copyright
Information
This translation is in the public domain (released May
1998) and may be used, in whole or in part, without permission and without
charge, provided the source is acknowledged.
Ian
Johnston
Liberal Studies Department
Malaspina University College
Nanaimo, British Columbia
May 1998
Revised May 2009
johnstoi@mala.bc.ca
Click here for English
Text or here for French Text
Reviews of the first English translation of Cuvier's essay in The British Review
and London Critical Journal, 1813 and in The Edinburgh
Review, 1813-1814
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