Johann Kaspar Lavater (1741–1801)

It's taken me a while to read this book. It's not that the book is long; far from it. It's simply that I've always been reading other books in the interim and I've kept putting it down. Since the book is simply a collection of aphorisms, it wasn't necessary that I read it in a timely manner. So I didn't.
Caspar Lavater was among the writers associated with the Sturm Und Drang movement that also included Hamann and Herder. The Sturm Und Drang (or Storm and Stress) movement was probably the most notable early German romantic movement (although it should be noted that Lavater was Swiss). They were noted for their opposition to the enlightenment proponents. They made some great contributions to the literature of the time; although, they are often overlooked today. Lavater was often seen as having a slightly mystical bent, as well as being involved in the physiognomony movement, which today is largely seen as pseudo-science. I became interested in him after reading William Blake's marginalia. Blake was quite taken with Lavater. I started reading him as a result. I certainly enjoyed the work. The English is definitely archaic and not always smooth, but I've been reading antiquated English for a while so it wasn't as difficult for me as it might be for others.… (more)

Darwin broke with previous traditions in physiognomy. His notebooks and correspondence contain references to earlier works in the field, such as the Fragments of Physiognomy of Johann Caspar Lavater. Darwin owned the ten-volume French edition, with its twenty-four images illustrating a frog metamorphosing into Apollo. Another significant work was the Anatomy and Philosophy of Expression as Connected with the Fine Arts, by the Scottish physician Sir Charles Bell. Bell’s work aroused Darwin’s interest in the subject and Darwin referred frequently to the third edition in Expression. Darwin’s research however pointed to shared evolution with animals, in contrast to Bell who proposed that humans had unique, divinely created muscles in order to express uniquely human emotions.
In a letter to Wallace dated 1867, Darwin wrote that:I want anyhow to upset Sir C. Bell’s view, given in his most interesting work “the anatomy of Expression” that certain muscles have been given to man solely that he may reveal to other men his feelings. I want to try & show how expressions have arisen.—… (more)