Bøger af John William Draper

The intellectual history of Europe in accordance with physiological principles so as to illustrate the orderly progress of civilization, with discussion of Europe's governments, topography, ethnology, and theology. Because it had an unusually positive view of the contributions of Muslim and Middle Eastern civilization to that of Europe, this book was immediately embraced by 19th century reformers in the Ottoman Empire. John William Draper (1811-1882), was an American scientist, philosopher, and historian. In 1839 he became professor of chemistry at the University of the City of New York. He helped organize the medical school of the university, became its professor of chemistry and physiology, and in 1850 succeeded as its president. A picture he took (1840) of his sister is the oldest surviving photographic portrait. Draper also made (1839-1840) the first photographs of the moon.

This fascinating text, first published in 1875, is a key early example of the conflict thesis. This theory expounds the premise of an intrinsic conflict between science and religion, and is archetypal of one aspect of this late-Victorian debate. Draper asserts that science has reached a point where its threat to traditional teachings can no longer be ignored, and he offers this history as a means to understanding both the interaction between religion and science and their perpetual opposition. He covers examples of this relationship, from Christianity's origins to the then contemporary crisis of church division and the Prussian-Austrian war, and also examines in turn what both Christianity and science have done for modern civilisation. Discussions of the central points of crossover and change in the history of science and Christianity lead to the conclusion that for religion to survive it must accept fact and reason.