May 6, 2009
The Discovery of the Gorilla and Its Impact on Society: From Darwinian "Link" to King Kong
Robert Peck
The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
Minutes of the 30th Meeting of the 67th Year
These minutes review the 30th meeting of the 67th year when the speaker brought together in a clear and scholarly way seeming unconnected threads to weave with words and pictures a tapestry of a long-forgotten explorer and naturalist, the discovery of the gorilla, and its impact on society.
President George Hanson, with the precision usually associated with the Swiss railroad, called the nearly 100 members to order at exactly 10:15 AM. Don Edwards led the invocation. Rosemary O’Brien read the minutes of the April 29th meeting.
Guests Ellen Kaplan and Marcia Atcheson were introduced by Michael Kaplan and John Schmidt, respectively.
President George Hanson announced the recent deaths of Emeritus Members Samuel Petock and Norman Sollenberger and asked for a few moments of silence in their memory.
President Hanson also thanked the Nominating Committee for their work – Chair Joe Bolster, Members Harvey Rothberg, John Lashley, and Henry King.
John Schmidt introduced Robert Peck, a Fellow of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and a 1974 graduate of Princeton University. Mr. Peck’s career as a writer, naturalist and historian has included research expeditions in North and South America, Asia, and Africa and membership in the Explorers Club. He is the author of five books and numerous articles in both popular and scholarly publications.
The gorilla had been discovered by others in the 1840s, but it was Paul Du Chaillu (du shy-you) who first brought this remarkable animal to public attention 20 years later. Du Chaillu was an enterprising French-American who was educated in part by American missionaries in Gabon where his father owned a trading depot.
Although Du Chaillu is not as well known today as others who explored Africa, (Stanley, Livingston, Burton, et al) he was well known at the time and his introduction of the gorilla was a sensation that captured the public imagination. The fact that this was a few months after the publication of “The Origin of the Species” contributed to the interest in this possible ancestor and fueled the debate over evolution that continues to this day.
Du Chaillu first observed gorillas and collected specimens on an expedition sponsored by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia to the wilds of the West Africa and the Gabon River in 1855. When Du Chaillu returned after 42 months, he capitalized on the public interest with lectures in major US cities and London.
He was an excellent story teller and presented his adventures surrounded by gorilla skins and skeletons. He contracted American, British, and later French publishers to print his best-selling books.
His observations were subject to criticism by other naturalists, some of whom had their own axes to grind and weren’t necessarily unbiased observers. Mr. Peck suggested that some British opposition may have been based on the feeling that Africa was England’s and Du Chaillu had both his French and American heritage working against him.
Attempts to bring living gorillas back from Africa failed because not only were the animals stressed and possibly injured from their capture, but also because their captors had failed to observe that gorillas were vegetarians and provided only meat for them to eat.
In addition to the gorillas, Du Chaillu brought back the first account of a tribe of Pygmies.
His second and only other expedition to Africa confirmed disputed observations of his first trip. This journey abruptly ended when members of his party killed two Ashango natives and all had to flee for their lives, abandoning instruments and collections.
Mr. Peck pointed out the many ways that the image of the gorilla has inspired artists, authors, and sculptors in subsequent years. He showed examples of children’s books, “Good Night, Gorilla,” a US Army World War I recruiting poster morphing the German Kaiser into a ferocious gorilla, and statues of a gorilla attacking a helpless woman. The Tarzan character in 26 books and nearly 50 films exhibits the gorilla chest pounding and loud triumphant cry described by Du Chaillu. Finally, the King Kong movies combine the ferocity of the gorilla with a gentleness that ultimately makes him sympathetic.
Mr. Peck’s presentation was enhanced by period pictures, photographs, and cartoons..
After a question period, the meeting was adjourned at 11:30 AM.
Respectfully submitted,
Jock McFarlane
President George Hanson, with the precision usually associated with the Swiss railroad, called the nearly 100 members to order at exactly 10:15 AM. Don Edwards led the invocation. Rosemary O’Brien read the minutes of the April 29th meeting.
Guests Ellen Kaplan and Marcia Atcheson were introduced by Michael Kaplan and John Schmidt, respectively.
President George Hanson announced the recent deaths of Emeritus Members Samuel Petock and Norman Sollenberger and asked for a few moments of silence in their memory.
President Hanson also thanked the Nominating Committee for their work – Chair Joe Bolster, Members Harvey Rothberg, John Lashley, and Henry King.
John Schmidt introduced Robert Peck, a Fellow of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and a 1974 graduate of Princeton University. Mr. Peck’s career as a writer, naturalist and historian has included research expeditions in North and South America, Asia, and Africa and membership in the Explorers Club. He is the author of five books and numerous articles in both popular and scholarly publications.
The gorilla had been discovered by others in the 1840s, but it was Paul Du Chaillu (du shy-you) who first brought this remarkable animal to public attention 20 years later. Du Chaillu was an enterprising French-American who was educated in part by American missionaries in Gabon where his father owned a trading depot.
Although Du Chaillu is not as well known today as others who explored Africa, (Stanley, Livingston, Burton, et al) he was well known at the time and his introduction of the gorilla was a sensation that captured the public imagination. The fact that this was a few months after the publication of “The Origin of the Species” contributed to the interest in this possible ancestor and fueled the debate over evolution that continues to this day.
Du Chaillu first observed gorillas and collected specimens on an expedition sponsored by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia to the wilds of the West Africa and the Gabon River in 1855. When Du Chaillu returned after 42 months, he capitalized on the public interest with lectures in major US cities and London.
He was an excellent story teller and presented his adventures surrounded by gorilla skins and skeletons. He contracted American, British, and later French publishers to print his best-selling books.
His observations were subject to criticism by other naturalists, some of whom had their own axes to grind and weren’t necessarily unbiased observers. Mr. Peck suggested that some British opposition may have been based on the feeling that Africa was England’s and Du Chaillu had both his French and American heritage working against him.
Attempts to bring living gorillas back from Africa failed because not only were the animals stressed and possibly injured from their capture, but also because their captors had failed to observe that gorillas were vegetarians and provided only meat for them to eat.
In addition to the gorillas, Du Chaillu brought back the first account of a tribe of Pygmies.
His second and only other expedition to Africa confirmed disputed observations of his first trip. This journey abruptly ended when members of his party killed two Ashango natives and all had to flee for their lives, abandoning instruments and collections.
Mr. Peck pointed out the many ways that the image of the gorilla has inspired artists, authors, and sculptors in subsequent years. He showed examples of children’s books, “Good Night, Gorilla,” a US Army World War I recruiting poster morphing the German Kaiser into a ferocious gorilla, and statues of a gorilla attacking a helpless woman. The Tarzan character in 26 books and nearly 50 films exhibits the gorilla chest pounding and loud triumphant cry described by Du Chaillu. Finally, the King Kong movies combine the ferocity of the gorilla with a gentleness that ultimately makes him sympathetic.
Mr. Peck’s presentation was enhanced by period pictures, photographs, and cartoons..
After a question period, the meeting was adjourned at 11:30 AM.
Respectfully submitted,
Jock McFarlane