James Hutton on Religion and Geology: the unpublished preface to his Theory of the Earth (1788)
- 1 May 1975
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis in Annals of Science
- Vol. 32 (3) , 187-193
- https://doi.org/10.1080/00033797500200241
Abstract
James Hutton knew before its publication that his geological theory would be subjected to religious criticism, and in an eventually rejected preface (published here for the first time) he endeavoured to mitigate that criticism. His theory is an almost perfect expression of the deistic tenets in which he believed. But he sensed that his attempted defence was inadequate, and so he submitted his preface to William Robertson for advice. Robertson rewrote Hutton's preface for him but also suggested tactfully that it not be published, advice which Hutton took. Upon publication, his theory received its full measure of religious opposition, but it is unlikely that Hutton's preface would have forestalled any of it. I transcribe and attempt to date the preface, discuss its contents, and suggest its usefulness in Huttonian studies.Keywords
This publication has 4 references indexed in Scilit:
- James Hutton and his public, 1785–1802Annals of Science, 1973
- History of English thought in the eighteenth century, Vol. 2.Published by American Psychological Association (APA) ,1876
- Illustrations of the Huttonian theory of the earth /Published by Smithsonian Institution ,1802
- X. Theory of the Earth; or an Investigation of the Laws observable in the Composition, Dissolution, and Restoration of Land upon the Globe.Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 1788