Chemical Education Today edited by
Book & Media Reviews The Enlightenment of Joseph Priestley: A Study of His Life and Works from 1733 to 1773 Robert E. Schofield. Penn State University Press: University Park, PA, 1997. xii + 305 pp. Figures. ISBN 0-271-01662-0. Cloth, $45.00.
Joseph Priestley (1733–1804) has never lacked for biographers. The Oesper collection in the History of Chemistry at the University of Cincinnati contains more than 22 items devoted to Priestley and his work. Beginning with the 1806 edition of Priestley’s autobiography (of which there are at least five editions: Priestley 1806, Rutt 1831, Freeston 1904, Boyer 1964, Lindsay 1970), the collection also contains seven additional biographies of varying length and quality (Corry 1804, Peacock 1919, Smith 1920, Holt 1931, Hartog et al. 1933, Gibbs 1965, Clark 1994), three volumes of collected essays dealing with his life and work (Kieft et al. 1974, Schwartz et al. 1990, Bohning et al. 1994), three volumes of collected letters (Rutt 1831, Bolton 1892, Schofield 1966), one Ph.D. thesis (McEvoy 1975), and one comprehensive bibliography (Cook 1966). There are even two fictionalized accounts of his life, one intended as an historical novel for adults (Gillam 1954) and the other for adolescents (Crane 1962). And, of course, these counts do not include the various editions of Priestley’s scientific books that are also found in the collection. Given this biographical abundance, one might well question whether there is any need for yet another book-length biography of this gifted man. The answer is, of course, a resounding yes. Because of their wide-ranging accomplishments in both chemistry and physics, many early British scientists such as Boyle, Cavendish, and Faraday have merited multiple biographies, some emphasizing their chemical accomplishments and others their contributions to natural philosophy. This dichotomy is also present in the case of Priestley, who made important contributions to both the study of electricity and the chemistry of gases, but is multiplied manyfold by the fact that he was also (if not primarily) a leading Unitarian theologian and educator. Indeed, John Towill Rutt’s edition of Priestley’s collected Theological and Miscellaneous Works, published between 1817 and 1832, occupies 25 thick volumes and takes up nearly two library shelves. Though previous biographies have tended to focus on either Priestley’s theology (Clark 1994) or his science (Gibbs 1965), few have succeeded in integrating them, and even fewer have dealt with his accomplishments in the field of education. Thus it is with great pleasure that one turns to this longanticipated biography of Priestley by Robert Schofield, Professor of History Emeritus at Iowa State University. The product of nearly 30 years of study and of at least three previous books (The Lunar Society of Birmingham, 1963; A Scientific Autobiography of Joseph Priestley, 1966; and British
Edward J. Walsh Allegheny College Meadville, PA 16335
Natural Philosophy in an Age of Materialism, 1970), The Enlightenment of Joseph Priestley begins the daunting task of finally producing an integrated overview of Priestley the man, the scientist, the theologian, the political theorist, and the educator—begins, rather than completes, because Schofield has chosen to terminate his account in 1773, the year that Priestley turned 40. The amount of information on Priestley is so vast that at least two volumes will be required to complete the task. However, as Schofield informs us in his preface, for reasons of both age and health he felt that it was imperative to publish the first volume now rather than wait for the completion of the second. Divided into eleven chapters and an epilogue, the book begins with Priestley’s childhood and adolescence in Birstall Fieldhead and Heckmondwike (1733–1752). Chapter 2 deals with his education as a minister at Daventry Academy (1752– 1755), Chapter 3 with his first ministries at Needham market and Nantwich (1755–1761), and Chapters 5 and 6 with his teaching appointment at Warrington Academy (1761–1767). It was during this latter period that Priestley made most of his educational contributions, including his Rudiments of English Grammar and his Chart of Biography, thus helping to lay the foundations of the modern high school and university curriculums. It was also at Warrington that Priestley began his study of electricity, which culminated in his election to the Royal Society in 1766 and the publication of his book The History of Electricity the next year. The remaining four chapters are devoted to Priestley’s ministry at Mill Hill Chapel in Leeds (1767–1773). This period represents the final maturation of Priestley’s theological and political thought as well as a continuation of his scientific achievements, including his work on light and vision and the beginnings of his interest in the chemistry of airs or gases. The book is well written and to the point. Sufficient context is given to clarify each of Priestley’s publications or activities, but long contextual digressions are avoided and little or no space is devoted to denigrating earlier Priestley scholarship. Though chemists will be disappointed that Schofield’s decision to terminate his account in 1773 means that most of Priestley’s most important work on pneumatic chemistry is not covered, they will still find the book of great interest and will be likely, like the reviewer, to keep their fingers crossed in anticipation that we will soon see the publication of volume 2. William B. Jensen Department of Chemistry University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, OH 45221-0172
JChemEd.chem.wisc.edu • Vol. 76 No. 3 March 1999 • Journal of Chemical Education
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