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The Humboldt Current: Nineteenth-Century Exploration and the Roots of American Environmentalism

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After glancing at the previous review, I decided that I must weigh in on this book. I read The Humboldt Current right after it was published. I found it effective on various levels. First, it allows us to understand Humboldt and his desire for a unified view of the natural world. Second, it takes us on a journey into early geographers and explorers in America, many of whom followed Humboldt's ideals. Third, in the conclusion, Sachs raises a host of important issues for present-day environmentalism. Readers should also know that Sachs writes in a sprightly, engaging fashion. If on occasion, his prose runs away from him, it also brightens most of the pages along the way.

In an era of specialized science, when most practitioners of the field attempt to understand the mechanisms underlying natural phenomena down to the last detail, it may be difficult to have a grasp of the big picture and embrace a holistic approach to nature and the universe as Alexander von Humboldt did in his time. Indeed one major premise of Aaron Sachs' book is that with increasing specialization that the progression of science entailed went the likes of Humboldt, his contemporaries, and the scientists, explorers, and adventurers who he inspired. Yet there still are scientists who can not only manage to provide a holistic framework to their specialties, but also look beyond their area of focus and appreciate other areas of interest to almost the same level of dedication. Thus we have Jane Goodall, Oliver Sacks, Jared Diamond, and the late Stephen Jay Gould and Carl Sagan, to name a few. The spirit of Humboldt lives in the mind of the Renaissance man and woman who are willing to share and communicate their interests to a larger audience, most of whom may not have the time, background, and resources to have similar pursuits.

Because Sachs writes well, the book is hardly the dense material you would expect from work about 19th century exploration and the roots of the American environmentalism. From Humboldt to J.N. Reynolds, from Clarence King to John Muir and George Wallace Melville, we find that their mystical and spiritual experiences from their work and exploration alternated with the mundane struggles of getting the funding and validation of their endeavors and the respect from their peers--and merely getting on with their personal lives. The conditions under which their lives ended were far from ideal, but they never questioned or regretted their passions. The 19th century might have provided the last opportunities for what we now consider the romantic quest for adventure, but political situations were always in flux and the competition for recognition was fierce. And then the Humboldtian way of scientific inquiry was threatened by the increasing specialization of science.

When Clarence King and John Muir climbed the mountains of the Sierra Nevada, there was not a single road that traversed the mountain range. The Sierras were open wilderness remote from centers of civilization. But, to this date, one can still get lost or harmed in this wilderness with lack of preparation or plain happenstance. Likewise, one can get lost, in the figurative sense, in the mystical experience from the magnificence of these mountains. The spirit of Humboldt lives in those who endeavor to appreciate the connectedness of the natural world and the universe. The book provides a human context to this type of experience that hikers, naturalists, and lovers of the natural world, scientists included, have.

One of my favorite parts of the book is an excerpt from Emerson in The Journals and Miscellaneous Notebooks of Ralph Waldo Emerson: "Is it not better to intimate our astonishment as we pass through this world if it be only for a moment ere we are swallowed up in the yeast of the abyss? I will lift up my hands and say Kosmos".

With the recent upsurge of interest of Alexander von Humboldt, Aaron Sachs provides an important review of the lasting influence of the man and his ecological influence. It is amazing that for years this great scientist/explorer was lost to the increasingly specialized pursuit of knowledge about our world. Sachs not only reviews in the first chapters an overview of Humboldt's travels and accomplishments but he goes on to demonstrate the lasting influence of his work on many of the 19th and 20th century figures as they pursued their various regions of the "unexplored" globe. Many personalities and pursuits are resurrected in this wonderful history of scientific exploration and interpretation. In addition, the work and influence of several visual artists is included which helped provide a graphic understanding of the new vision of the world being experienced.

Throughout the work I sensed the influence on Sachs by yet another explorer, one who was challenged by the "continents within." Henry Thoreau's works were often referenced as they provided insight into the interpretation of Humboldt's influence.


I appreciate Sachs' personal style. Unlike so many serious studies, he allows his own persona to come through. His insights into Humboldt's influence on the explorers carries over to Sachs himself. We witness a respect and deep admiration for Humboldt and his influence that Sachs is not afraid to reveal. Thus, this book is in many respects a very personal work.

There is more--an exhaustive (read 70 pages) of helpful notes which slowed me down for I read all of them; a wonderful chronology of Humboldt's life and beyond to the present; 25 pages of bibliography which drove me to more purchases.

Anyone interested in Humboldt, 19th century exploration, ecology and environmental studies, and Henry D. Thoreau will find this work deeply inspirational and challenging. Would I recommend it? I already have--many times!
Tom Potter

For summer (well, all seasons) travelers, walkers, eco-sensors, connectors, adventure kickers et al, much recommend , "Humboldt Current" Nineteenth Century Exploration of the Roots of American Environmentalism" by Aaron Sachs. Humboldt - his (wonderful) writing and life - is at and of the fountain of so much. And Sachs is on the case!

the subject - Humboldt - is a very interesting character and is duly praised by the author; but when the latter enters into the philosophical and literature realm, it's too much! it's not what I expected- after all he and I are scientists- and the book becomes boring.