#The ascent of man series
The two series were in fact intended to be complementary, and the books that have resulted from them resemble each other physically, especially in their sumptuous production. Like Kenneth Clark's Civilisation, which I reviewed in these pages some years ago, 1 The Ascent of Man was originally a BBC television series. Even if its location changes, from Germany to America, perhaps from a declining West to a resurgent China, there is no reason to despair: the ascent continues, despite hesitations and perversions, for man will never abandon the search for understanding.
Evil men may come and go-the most moving passages in the book juxtapose the research performed at Göttingen, whose results undermined the belief in certainty, with the world view of the Nazis, whose closed-minded certainty annihilated open inquiry as well as human life-but the fundamental purity of science persists. Although he does not confront directly the possibility that discoveries in genetics may be misused, he dismisses with confidence the problems raised by possible tamperings with nature: since cloning runs contrary to evolution, and “diversity is the breath of life,” such manipulations will find no allies in the great life-enhancer, science. Bronowski's response, however, is unabashedly optimistic. The recent concern among geneticists about the effects of their research shows that this field, too, is by no means immune from perilous applications. Scientists can be used for evil ends, and Bronowski appreciates the reasons that impelled a number of physicists (Szilard among them) to shift their interests to biology in the years after Hiroshima. And at the heart of the ascent is the achievement of science. From his very title, a confident adaptation of Darwin, to his peroration on the democracy and ethics inherent in the quest for knowledge, he proclaims his near-Whiggish belief in the rising progress of our species.
Blending homespun moral philosophy with sheer joy at the marvel of man, constant reminders of the links between art and science, a few quite difficult technical analyses, and reverence for the powers of genius, Bronowski weaves a wondrously persuasive web. The downswing began at Hiroshima, whose aftermath is epitomized by the remark made to Leo Szilard, and quoted by Bronowski: “It was the tragedy of scientists.” Szilard's reply, “It is the tragedy of mankind,” can also be taken to stand for a much larger argument-the argument whereby Bronowski seeks to restore the innocence and brilliance that seemed to characterize science for most of its history since the 17th century, and that even in the period just past has surrounded daring experiments like the demonstration of continental drift.Īs sheer propaganda devoted to one major end, The Ascent of Man is a tour de force. For the past thirty years the fear aroused by the destructive powers of modern technology has cast the entire enterprise of science (which at its highest levels has very little to do with technology) into the role of the chief villain of modern times. The public image of science is in one of its periodic declines.
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