Daniel Garrison Brinton

Daniel Garrison Brinton
Portrait painted by Thomas Eakins, circa 1899.

Daniel Garrison Brinton (May 13, 1837 – July 31, 1899) was an American archaeologist and ethnologist.

Contents

Biography

Brinton was born in Thornbury Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. After graduating from Yale University in 1858, Brinton studied at Jefferson Medical College for two years and spent the next travelling in Europe. He continued his studies at Paris and Heidelberg. From 1862 to 1865, during the American Civil War, he was a surgeon in the Union army, acting during 1864-1865 as surgeon-in-charge of the U.S. Army general hospital at Quincy, Illinois. Brinton was sun-stroked at Missionary Ridge (Third Battle of Chattanooga) and was never again able to travel in very hot weathers. This handicap affected his career as an ethnologist.

After the war, Brinton practiced medicine in West Chester, Pennsylvania for several years; was the editor of a weekly periodical, the Medical and Surgical Reporter, in Philadelphia from 1874 to 1887; became professor of ethnology and archaeology in the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia in 1884; and was professor of American linguistics and archaeology in the University of Pennsylvania from 1886 until his death.

He was a member of numerous learned societies in the United States and in Europe and was president at different times of the Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Philadelphia, of the American Folklore Society, the American Philosophical Society, and of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

At his presidential address to the American Association for the Advancement of Science in August 1895, Brinton advocated theories of scientific racism that were pervasive at that time. As Charles A. Lofgren notes in his book, The Plessy Case, although Brinton "accepted the 'psychical unity' throughout the human species," he claimed "all races were 'not equally endowed,' which disqualified [some of] them from the atmosphere of modern enlightenment." He asserted some have "...an inborn tendency, constitutionally recreant to the codes of civilization, and therefore technically criminal." Further, he said the characteristics of "races, nations, tribes...supply the only sure foundations for legislation, not a priori notions of the rights of man."[1]

Brinton was an anarchist during his last several years of life. In April 1896, he addressed the Ethical Fellowship of Philadelphia with a lecture on "What the Anarchists Want," to a friendly audience. In October 1897, Brinton had dinner with Peter Kropotkin after the famous anarchist's only speaking engagement at Philadelphia. Kropotkin had refused invitations from all of the city's elites. [2] [3]

On the occasion of his memorial meeting on October 6, 1900, the keynote speaker Albert H. Smyth stated: "In Europe and America, he sought the society of anarchists and mingled sometimes with the malcontents of the world that he might appreciate their grievances, and weigh their propositions for reform and change." [4]

Works

From 1868 to 1899, Brinton wrote many books, and a large number of pamphlets, brochures, addresses and magazine articles. His works include:

In addition, he edited and published a Library of American Aboriginal Literature (8 vols. 1882-1890), a valuable contribution to the science of anthropology in America. Of the eight volumes; six were edited by Brinton himself, one by Horatio Hale and one by Albert Samuel Gatschet. His 1885 work is notable for its role in the Walam Olum controversy.

References

  1. ^ Charles A. Lofgren, "The Plessey Case: A Legal-Historical Interpretation, Oxford University Press (1988), pp. 104-5. ISBN 0195056841
  2. ^ The Conservator, October 26th, 1897
  3. ^ Letters, Brinton to Horace Traubel, April 26 & 27, 1896. Special Collections Dept., Temple University
  4. ^ Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society January 16, 1900, keynote address by Albert H. Smyth.

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Daniel Garrison Brinton — (* 13. Mai 1837 in Thornbury (Pennsylvania); † 31. Juli 1899 in Philadelphia) war ein amerikanischer Archäologe und Ethnologe. In …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Daniel Garrison Brinton — noun United States anthropologist who was the first to attempt a systematic classification of Native American languages (1837 1899) • Syn: ↑Brinton • Instance Hypernyms: ↑anthropologist …   Useful english dictionary

  • Daniel G. Brinton — Daniel Garrison Brinton Daniel Garrison Brinton (* 13. Mai 1837 in Thornbury (Pennsylvania); † 31. Juli 1899 in Philadelphia) war ein amerikanischer Archäologe und Ethnologe. Inhaltsverzeichnis …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Brinton,Daniel Garrison — Brin·ton (brĭnʹtən), Daniel Garrison. 1837 1899. American anthropologist who was the first to attempt a systematic classification of Native American languages. * * * …   Universalium

  • Brinton — may refer to:* Maurice Brinton, writer for libertarian socialist group Solidarity * Daniel Garrison Brinton, American archaeologist and ethnologist * Crane Brinton, American historian of France and the history of ideas * Sal Brinton, a British… …   Wikipedia

  • Brinton — ist der Nachname folgender Personen: Crane Brinton (1898–1968), US amerikanischer Historiker Daniel Garrison Brinton (1837–1899), US amerikanischer Archäologe und Ethnologe Ralph Brinton (1895–1975), britischer Filmarchitekt Timothy Brinton… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Brinton — noun United States anthropologist who was the first to attempt a systematic classification of Native American languages (1837 1899) • Syn: ↑Daniel Garrison Brinton • Instance Hypernyms: ↑anthropologist …   Useful english dictionary

  • Brinton — Brinton, Daniel Garrison, amerikan. Ethnolog, geb. 13. Mai 1837 in Thornbury (Pennsylvanien), gest. 31. Juli 1899 in Philadelphia, studierte Medizin, bereiste 1861–62 Europa und ließ sich nach Beendigung des Bürgerkriegs, in dem er als… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Brinton — (spr. brinnt n), Daniel Garrison, Ethnolog (Amerikanist), geb. 13. Mai 1837 in Thornbury (Pennsylvanien), seit 1884 Prof. in Philadelphia, gest. 31. Juli 1899; schrieb: »Races and peoples« (1890), »The american race« (1891) etc …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Liste der Biografien/Brf–Brm — Biografien: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”