Celebrating Lamarck

CELEBRATING LAMARCK


Pietro CORSI
Université Paris I, Panthéon-Sorbonne, EHSSS

Director
CRHST, Cité des sciences et de l’industrie



Anniversaries, whether they celebrate an event twenty-five, fifty, or even a 
hundred or several hundreds years old, are notorious for lacking critical 
insight, being rather prone to extravagant superlatives than to sober 
recollection. Through the reconstruction of the activities and the more or less 
heroic image of the deceased, group-identities or national allegiances are 
reinforced, cultural traditions are enhanced or reconstituted :  the praises of 
the past are sung with an enthusiasm that is in direct proportion to the 
temporal distance with the celebrated event. Clearly, this is a legitimate and 
frequent exercise, even if it teaches us more about the participants than the 
person thus honoured. The official celebrations of Lamarck, dating from the 
inauguration on 13 June 1909 of the famous monument still greeting visitors to 
the Muséum d’histoire naturelle, is no exception to the rule.  What is 
remarkable, however, is the persistence of celebratory themes and clichés that 
the historical works on Lamarck – a flow of them has appeared over the last 
thirty years - have not managed significantly to modify. It could even be said 
that the historians of Lamarck are often led to admit the fruitlessness of their 
efforts to go beyond the myths and understand a scientist who, even today, still 
arouses sincere and even vehement passions.