Jean-Henri Fabre

Jean -Henri Casimir Fabre ( born December 21, 1823 in Saint- Léon you Lévézou, † October 11, 1915 in Sérignan -du -Comtat, Vaucluse ) was a French scientist ( entomologist ), poet and writer, member of the Académie Française and the Légion d' honneur. He is considered a pioneer of behavioral research and ecophysiology.

Life

Jean -Henri Fabre experienced in his poverty-stricken childhood in Lévezou the bareness of the landscape of the French Massif Central. Today, the Micropolis, a modern insect museum is located in his hometown of Saint- Léon. A small private museum also shows how Fabre's birthplace might have looked like.

With ten years Fabre received a scholarship to the school in Rodez, where he laid the foundation for his humanistic education in the coming years. Here he acquired knowledge of Latin and Greek, and here he met Virgil, the particularly shaped his relationship to nature. 1834 left the family because of financial difficulties Saint- Léon. Jean -Henri moved with his parents to Toulouse to Montpellier later and finally in 1840 to Avignon. There he was seventeen years, the entrance examination for the teacher training college. Thanks to a scholarship, he was able to complete the training after two years with a diploma. From 1842 to 1849 Fabre worked as a teacher in Carpentras in Provence. In 1844 he took after the Abitur. In 1846, he received a licentiate of Mathematics and Physics, 1848. In 1855 he received his doctorate at the Faculty of Science in Paris. From 1849 to 1853 he worked as a physics teacher at the Lyceum in Ajaccio ( Corsica). During this time he studied the plants and shells of Corsica. In 1853 he was transferred as a physics professor to Avignon, where he worked until 1870.

After the July Revolution of 1830, a law ( loi Guizot ) to reform the public school system was adopted in 1833, which was to reorganize the education as a means of reconciliation 's ascendant bourgeoisie with the still troubled nation. The modernization was supported in particular by Victor Duruy, who was Minister of Education since 1863. 1867 Duruy began a program of adult and girls' education. He visited Fabre in Avignon and won it for a cooperation, Fabre took over the organization of evening classes for everyone. During the Second Empire, the Catholic Church had won in France again in influence. They took exception to the courses, especially at the participation of girls. Under their pressure Duruy 1869 had to resign as minister of education. Also Fabre got to feel the church resistance: He was dismissed from the teaching service and lost his apartment. Meanwhile, his income from the publication of educational and school books were so great that he wanted to venture into self-employment. A first attempt to settle with his family in a rural area, was not to last. Then, in 1879 he was able to acquire Orange -Est an estate in Sérignan- du- Comtat in the canton. His friend, the English politician and natural philosopher John Stuart Mill, who lived for a time in Avignon, financed the purchase of land with a loan of 3,000 francs. ( The loan amount is equivalent to approximately EURO 24,000 today. )

His harmas called Fabre this property. In the souvenirs entomologiques he writes:

"That is what I was looking for, hoc erat in votis: a piece of land, no, not particularly large, but completed and protected from prying eyes; a piece of land, abandoned, barren, burnt by the sun, but favorable for thistles and Hymenoptera. Since I can consult sand wasp and grave wasp without being disturbed by passers [ ... ] Hoc erat in votis: yes, that was my wish, my dream as long persecuted and repeatedly caught up in misty distance [ ... ] For forty years I struggle with stubborn courage against the petty miseries of life; finally the long-awaited laboratory has become a reality. What did it cost me persevering, persistent effort, I 'll try not to say. It is here and with it - even harder to get - maybe a little leisure [ ... ] It is a harmas. We are talking about in the country constitute inertia, stony, thyme ceded area ... "

After Fabre redeveloped the long uninhabited, neglected buildings and the garden was surrounded by a wall, he lived here with his family until his death. He defended his material and spiritual independence - even at the cost of occasional money worries.

Today, the harmas is available as a state museum to the public. It is located near Orange, not far from the A7 motorway, which connects with the South Lyon. In addition to the garden and the living rooms is also the working space Fabre's with the tiny, hardly a square foot table at which he has worked and written to see. As a Japanese company nachbaute the famous furniture of the scholar, it sold 10,000 copies thereof immediately.

Family

1844 married Jean -Henri Fabre and Marie- Césarine Villard, the same year the first daughter was born. Seven children were born of the marriage, two of which the child's age did not survive. Died in 1885 Marie- Césarine. 1887 Fabre married his young housekeeper Marie- Joséphine Daudel (* 1863), with whom he had three more children. After the death of Marie- Joséphine his daughter Aglaé supplied her father. She lived until 1931 in harmas.

Activities

Fabre was with many of his time in his correspondence, especially with Charles Darwin. However, its evolution over he remained skeptical as he ever showed all theories and systems against restraint. His strength was the careful and precise detail observation fieldwork. Above all hasty, generalized conclusions from his observations he was always on guard. Of particular concern is the animal instinct behavior with him numerous detailed observations and experiments.

Fabre has published numerous books with which he folksy manner especially youth scientific and other issues - tried almost bring - chemistry, botany, arithmetic, astronomy, algebra, trigonometry, agriculture, etc.. He had so such a success that he was finally able to live by his publications. If he thereby also the general upswing of education proved useful, so he owed the breakthrough but especially his special educational talent. His ability to explain complicated issues and processes in an exciting and readable form, is particularly evident in the entomologiques souvenirs.

Fabre has also painted, but without having ever received character or painting lessons. From childhood he had a particular interest in mushrooms and so he created 616 watercolors of fungi, according to the judgment of proven experts are of great scientific accuracy.

Musiziert has also Fabre. Today you can visit the harmonium, on which he played nightly entertainment harmas. He could improvise read music and write and knew here as everywhere. He sent a friend one day, the music and lyrics to a song written by him and wrote: " ... do not be alarmed about the many semitones. I have found that half- tones are gentle on the harmonium ... "

1912 Fabre was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature. However, the Swedish Academy awarded this year from the German poet and playwright Gerhart Hauptmann.

1951 turned the French director Henri Diamant -Berger Monsieur Fabre, a film about Jean -Henri Fabre's life with Pierre Fresnay in the title role.

Publications

World famous and translated into many languages ​​Fabre's Souvenirs entomologiques ( Entomological memories ), an extensive work which he has published in ten series in the period 1879-1907. It combines the careful and accurate description of insect observations with personal memories, descriptions of people and the nature of his home in southern France and poems in French and Occitan. Especially in Japan Fabre is revered as a man who knew how to combine scientific and literary education in an exemplary manner.

In Germany Fabre and his souvenirs entomologiques have long been largely unknown. Meanwhile, there are also translations into German. Kurt Guggenheim writes in his selection The open secret: "... the art is in Fabre's work is a byproduct. Just as resting on all its descriptions of the scent of thyme and lavender, glistening the sun of Provence, the mistral blows, so a nameless poetry has in many of his chapters spread, of which the reader is touched. "

Works (selection)

• Souvenirs entomologiques. Études sur l' instinct et les moeurs of insectes - I. Première à série cinquième. Robert Laffont, Paris 2001, ISBN 2-221-05462-8
• Souvenirs entomologiques. Études sur l' instinct et les moeurs of insectes II Sixième à série dixième. Robert Laffont, Paris 1998, ISBN 2-221-05463-6

• Images from the insect world. First to fourth series in two volumes. Stuttgart: cosmos, Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung, Vol I: undated, Volume II: 1914.
• The open secret. From the life's work of the entomologist (souvenirs entomologiques - Études sur l' instinct et les moeurs of insectes [ selection ] ). Artemis, Zurich and Munich 1977, ISBN 3- 7608-0716 -X.
• Miracle of life. From the diverse world of insects (souvenirs entomologiques - Études sur l' instinct et les moeurs of insectes [ selection ] ). Artemis, Zurich and Munich 1989, ISBN 3-7608-1014-4.
• Images from the insect world. One edition of the Cosmos original editions from 1908 to 1914 * First to fourth series (souvenirs entomologiques [ selection ] ). Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-440-09642-4.
• A look at the beetle life (souvenirs entomologiques [ selection ] ). Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 1910.
• The starry sky. Lectures for young and old from the field of astronomy ( edited by R. Graff ). Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 1911.
• The air ( L'air, nécessaire à la vie). Friedensau Press, Berlin, 1985, ISBN 3-921592-18-6
• But I explore the middle of life! From the poetry of insects and Heinrich Hahn Verlag, Frankfurt / M. 2008 ( selection from the souvenirs entomologiques ), ISBN 978-3-86597-047-3.

The German edition of the Complete Works (10 volumes), translated by Friedrich Koch and with drawings by Christian Thannhäuser to be completed by 2015.

• Memories of an entomologist I. First volume of the complete edition of souvenirs entomologiques. Matthes & Seitz Berlin, 2009, ISBN 978-3-88221-664-6.
• Memories of an entomologist II Second volume of the complete edition of souvenirs entomologiques. Matthes & Seitz Berlin, 2010, ISBN 978-3-88221-672-1.
• Memories of an entomologist III. Third volume of the complete edition of souvenirs entomologiques. Matthes & Seitz Berlin, 2011, ISBN 978-3-88221-673-8.
• Memories of an entomologist IV Fourth volume of the complete edition of souvenirs entomologiques. Matthes & Seitz Berlin, 2012, ISBN 978-3-88221-674-5.
• Memories of an entomologist V. Fifth volume of the complete edition of souvenirs entomologiques. Matthes & Seitz Berlin, 2013, ISBN 978-3-88221-675-2.

In the bilingual complete edition of the German and French texts are juxtaposed so that the direct text comparison is facilitated. The edition contains the original drawings by Fabre. The sample shall not in numerical order, so far five volumes have been published.

• Entomological Memories, 1st series (1879 ), bilingual edition, translated by Franz -Josef Wittmann, 2009, lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-4452-5812-6.
• Entomological Memoirs, 2nd series (1882 ), bilingual edition, translated by Franz -Josef Wittmann, 2010 lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-4461-0262-6.
• Entomological Memoirs, Series 10 (1907 ), bilingual edition, translated by Franz -Josef Wittmann, 2011 lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-4710-2589-1.
• Entomological Memories, 6th series (1907 ), bilingual edition, translated by Franz -Josef Wittmann, 2013, lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-291-34892-7.
• Entomological Memoirs, 3rd series (1886 ), bilingual edition, translated by Franz -Josef Wittmann, 2013, lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-291-72873-6.