
Tenacious of Life
The Quadruped Essays of John James Audubon and John Bachman
University of Nebraska Press
Will be published approx. on 1. June 2021
Book
Hardback
424 pages
978-1-4962-1334-1 (ISBN)
Description
Daniel Patterson and Eric Russell present a groundbreaking case for considering John James Audubon's and John Bachman's quadruped essays as worthy of literary analysis and redefine the role of Bachman, the perpetually overlooked coauthor of the essays. After completing The Birds of America (1826-38), Audubon began developing his work on the mammals. The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America volumes show an antebellum view of nature as fundamentally dynamic and simultaneously grotesque and awe-inspiring. The quadruped essays are rich with good stories about these mammals and the humans who observe, pursue, and admire them.
For help with the science and the essays, Audubon enlisted the Reverend John Bachman of Charleston, South Carolina. While he has been acknowledged as coauthor of the essays, Bachman has received little attention as an American nature writer. While almost all works that describe the history of American nature writing include Audubon, Bachman shows up only in a subordinate clause or two. Tenacious of Life strives to restore Bachman's status as an important American nature writer.
Patterson and Russell analyze the coauthorial dance between the voices of Audubon, an experienced naturalist telling adventurous hunting stories tinged often by sentiment, romanticism, and bombast, and of Bachman, the courteous gentleman naturalist, scientific detective, moralist, sometimes cruel experimenter, and humorist. Drawing on all the primary and secondary evidence, Patterson and Russell tell the story of the coauthors' fascinating, conflicted relationship. This collection offers windows onto the early United States and much forgotten lore, often in the form of travel writing, natural history, and unique anecdotes, all told in the compelling voices of Antebellum America's two leading naturalists.
For help with the science and the essays, Audubon enlisted the Reverend John Bachman of Charleston, South Carolina. While he has been acknowledged as coauthor of the essays, Bachman has received little attention as an American nature writer. While almost all works that describe the history of American nature writing include Audubon, Bachman shows up only in a subordinate clause or two. Tenacious of Life strives to restore Bachman's status as an important American nature writer.
Patterson and Russell analyze the coauthorial dance between the voices of Audubon, an experienced naturalist telling adventurous hunting stories tinged often by sentiment, romanticism, and bombast, and of Bachman, the courteous gentleman naturalist, scientific detective, moralist, sometimes cruel experimenter, and humorist. Drawing on all the primary and secondary evidence, Patterson and Russell tell the story of the coauthors' fascinating, conflicted relationship. This collection offers windows onto the early United States and much forgotten lore, often in the form of travel writing, natural history, and unique anecdotes, all told in the compelling voices of Antebellum America's two leading naturalists.
Reviews / Votes
"Tenacious of Life is a great resource for individuals seeking primary sources that relate to the intersections of human and nonhuman history. Those interested in learning more about slavery, war, Manifest Destiny, and more through the lens of environmental history will find this book insightful."-Mette Flynt, Chronicles of Oklahoma "This book should be of equal interest to historians and naturalists."-J. S. Schwartz, Choice "Valuable and beautiful, if also haunting and provocative. This book fills a serious gap in our literature and gives cause for deep reflection as we stand on the verge of the human-caused Sixth Extinction. The introduction is superb, opening with an important discussion of the central role in the Audubon and Bachman essays of white supremacy, speciesism, slavery, and other forms of violence, and ending with a brief but illuminating comparison with Susan Fenimore Cooper and Henry David Thoreau-a fascinating, even riveting, treatment. The primary essays that follow are classics in natural history, full of energy, incident, and anecdote."-Laura Dassow Walls, author of Henry David Thoreau: A LifeMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Lincoln
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
40 illustrations, index
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 198 mm
Thickness: 38 mm
Weight
771 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4962-1334-1 (9781496213341)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

John James Audubon | John Bachman | Daniel Patterson
Tenacious of Life
The Quadruped Essays of John James Audubon and John Bachman
E-Book
06/2021
1st Edition
University of Nebraska Press
€77.49
Available for download

John James Audubon | John Bachman | Daniel Patterson
Tenacious of Life
The Quadruped Essays of John James Audubon and John Bachman
E-Book
06/2021
1st Edition
University of Nebraska Press
€77.49
Available for download
Persons
John James Audubon (1785-1851) is one of America's premiere wildlife artists. He traveled extensively in the 1820s and 1830s, painting and cataloging every bird then known in the United States. His monumental Birds of America is often considered the greatest picture book ever produced. John Bachman (1790-1874) was an American Lutheran minister and naturalist. Daniel Patterson is emeritus professor of English at Central Michigan University. He is the author and editor of several books, including John James Audubon's Journal of 1826: The Voyage to The Birds of America (Nebraska, 2011), Early American Nature Writers: A Biographical Encyclopedia, and Missouri River Journals of John James Audubon (Nebraska, 2016). Eric Russell is a lecturer of English at Alma College.
Content
List of Illustrations
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Editorial Principles
The Quadruped Essays
Common American Wild Cat
American Cross Fox
Carolina Gray Squirrel
Chipping Squirrel
Common American Shrew Mole
Gray Rabbit
Leopard Spermophile
Pennant's Marten or Fisher
Canada Otter
Brown or Norway Rat
American Bison
White Weasel
Raccoon
Virginian Opossum
White American Wolf
Rocky Mountain Sheep
Prong-horned Antelope
Mule Deer
Annulated Marmot Squirrel
LeConte's Pine Mouse
Common American Deer
Red Texan Wolf
American Red Fox
Common Mouse
Cougar
Ring-tailed Bassaris
Missouri Mouse
Columbian Black-tailed Deer
American Black or Silver Fox
Dusky Squirrel
Cinnamon Bear
Rocky Mountain Goat
Grizzly Bear
Richardson's Meadow-Mouse
Pine Marten
American Black Bear
Textual Notes
Works of Natural History Cited in the Essays
Index
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Editorial Principles
The Quadruped Essays
Common American Wild Cat
American Cross Fox
Carolina Gray Squirrel
Chipping Squirrel
Common American Shrew Mole
Gray Rabbit
Leopard Spermophile
Pennant's Marten or Fisher
Canada Otter
Brown or Norway Rat
American Bison
White Weasel
Raccoon
Virginian Opossum
White American Wolf
Rocky Mountain Sheep
Prong-horned Antelope
Mule Deer
Annulated Marmot Squirrel
LeConte's Pine Mouse
Common American Deer
Red Texan Wolf
American Red Fox
Common Mouse
Cougar
Ring-tailed Bassaris
Missouri Mouse
Columbian Black-tailed Deer
American Black or Silver Fox
Dusky Squirrel
Cinnamon Bear
Rocky Mountain Goat
Grizzly Bear
Richardson's Meadow-Mouse
Pine Marten
American Black Bear
Textual Notes
Works of Natural History Cited in the Essays
Index