Charles and Emma The Darwins' Leap of Faith [Paperback]

Charles Darwin publishedThe Origin of Species, his revolutionary tract on evolution and the fundamental ideas involved, in 1859. Nearly 150 years later, the theory of evolution continues to create tension between the scientific and religious communities. Challenges about teaching the theory of evolution in schools occur annually all over the country. This same debate raged within Darwin himself, and played an important part in his marriage: his wife, Emma, was quite religious, and her faith gave Charles a lot to think about as he worked on a theory that continues to spark intense debates.

Deborah Heiligman's new biography of Charles Darwin is a thought-provoking account of the man behind evolutionary theory: how his personal life affected his work and vice versa. The end result is an engaging exploration of history, science, and religion for young readers.

Charles and Emmais a 2009 National Book Award Finalist for Young People's Literature.

Discussion Questions

1. What does it say about Charles's character that he made a pro/con list to decide whether he should get married or not?

2. What effect do you think that fact Dr. Darwin allowed his children freedom of thought regarding religion had on Charles's professional life?

3. Do you agree with Dr. Darwin's marital advice to his son?

4. Explain the quote on page 46 education and environment produce only a small effect on the mind of anyone & most of our qualities are innate. Does this sound like any popular scientific theory you know of?

5. What does Charles mean when he uses the term materialism ? (Chapter 7)

6. Why did the author include the information about slavery and Charles's position and thoughts upon the subject? (see page 72)

7. Could Charles's theory of evolution have upset the church in ways other than upsetting the belief in creationism? (see pages 74 ff.)

8. At the bottom of page 120 Charles believes that revealing his l’