Rare Book & Manuscript Library

Descriptive Information

Title

Elements of geology

Description

Charles Lyell, through the publication of his Principles of Geology (1833) and Elements of Geology (1838), became a dominant figure in mid-19th century geology. With these two works, Lyell built upon the earlier theories of Hutton and proposed the Earth as a steady-state system that operated upon the principles of actual causes. He also set himself against the emerging school of thought that argued for a directional Earth history punctuated by various “revolutions”. This debate was classified by William Whewell as one between “uniformitarians” like Lyell, and “catastrophists” like Buckland. Both sides agreed that actual causes were the best methods to use in reconstructing the geologic past, but the key difference was the extent to which the present day causes had always operated at their current intensity throughout all of geologic time. A second important difference was the cyclical and steady nature of Lyell’s principles, which included his proposal that the recently discovered Jurassic reptiles could someday return to inhabit the Earth. One such cycle is shown here in the frontispiece to Elements of Geology. The image shows that all classes of rocks (A, aqueous or sedimentary; B, volcanic; C, metamorphic; D, plutonic) are being formed at the present and repeat earlier phases of the same rock types (lower case letter).

Call Number (click link to view in library catalog)

550 L981838

See Also

https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=NCCO&u=uiuc_uc&id=GALE

Full Text Available at Gail Primary Sources

Authors

Lyell, Charles

Full Title

Elements of geology

Date

1838

From the Exhibit

https://exhibits.library.illinois.edu/s/rbml/page/maps-and-cross-sections

Publisher

John Murray

Location

London

Language

English

Rights

This item is the physical property of the Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Intellectual property rights, including copyright, may reside with the materials' creator(s) or their heirs.
The Rare Book & Manuscript Library's reproduction and publication policies are available here: https://www.library.illinois.edu/rbx/collections/reproduction-services/. The library welcomes requests for reproductions made from works in our collections, though restrictions may apply to certain materials. Please contact the library with any questions at askacurator@illinois.edu.

Type

Text

Medium

Book

Bibliographic Citation

Lyell, Charles. Elements of Geology. London: John Murray, 1838.