I liked your paragraph on the “spectacle” aspect. The fact that Louis eventually lost interest in the project puts more weight on the possibility that these demonstrations were predominantly power displays. Sort of a cross between a modern TED talk or Royal Institution Youtube lecture and the entertainment value of a public execution. It’s interesting that this era produced the first zoo where animals were organized on the basis of species, yet the dissection project did not really lay much groundwork for evolutionary theory. This “spectacular” quality, as well as the accessibility of anatomical drawings (which did not require much knowledge of Latin for comprehension) goes a long way toward explaining why anatomy became the first “popular” science, in my view.

First, thanks very much for the kind words. I see what you’re saying about being too focused on Guerrini. I was on a roll, so I didn’t redirect my attention when I should have. I’ll keep that in mind in my next review.

One of the issues I have is keeping my reviews flowing. I feel like either I’m rushing through it to get to what I think are the bigger issues, or, after I get caught up in the details of one chapter, I try to do the same with the rest of the chapters, even if they aren’t equally important. Thanks again for your comments. They’re really helpful!

Laszlo