Through a Glass Darkly: Dava Sobel’s Galileo’s Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith and Love

Galileo’s Daughter is neither a new book nor about evolution, but it exemplifies the nature of science and illuminates the interaction between science and society. Dava Sobel has written two popular science books: Longitude and Galileo’s Daughter. She has a long career as a science writer and in these books, she not only gives clear, basic explanations of the science but also provides a rich social and political context for this scientific work. Reading Galileo’s Daughter, I was struck by the similarities that persist in the relationship between science and society from 1633, when Galileo faced the Inquisition, to 2008, when unpopular scientific theories, such as evolution, face very public political and social rejection. Ms. Sobel paints a vivid picture of the world in which Galileo lived and worked. The politics and personal decisions of Galileo and other characters are familiar to us today—the hunt for job security, the fiscal demands of supporting a family, enemies seeking revenge, and defense by steadfast friends. For example, Galileo went to great lengths to secure the support of the powerful Medici family, and this paid off for him in the form of a permanent position financed by the Medicis. In return, Galileo named celestial objects for the members of the family, was at their beck and call as a tutor, and was careful to publicize his research in such a manner that it would not offend or alienate them. This stable position was important since Galileo was responsible for the support of his three children, all born out of wedlock in a long-term relationship, and his younger siblings after his father’s death. A combination of monetary constraints, his daughter’s unmarriageable status, and politics lead Galileo to arrange for his daughters to enter a convent. His older daughter, Virginia, became Sour Maria Celeste when she took her vows, and it is she to whom the title of the book refers. Maria Celeste and Galileo had a special relationship throughout the course of her life, which Ms. Sobel has used in her book to illustrate many of the social and political situations Galileo faced. The clash between Galileo and the Church echoes the issues we face in today’s society. As Ms. Sobel’s book clearly indicates, the Catholic Church in Galileo’s time was a very powerful political entity and as such engaged in politics and political intrigue just as any other political entity might. The Catholic Church has changed a great deal since then and has moved past many of the issues that caused the refutation of heliocentrism—Copernicus’ theory that the Earth and other planets orbit the sun. However, many parallels may be drawn between resistance to scientific concepts then and now. I do not want to suggest that the Catholic Church or any other religious group is inherently anti-science, as I do not believe this to be the case. I simply mean that powerful social and political groups continue to oppose strongly supported, but uncomfortable, scientific ideas. It is well known that the Inquisition, acting as an agent of the Catholic Church, vilified Galileo for his support of heliocentrism. This book paints an interesting picture of the politics behind this event, and it is enlightening to realize just how important a role politics played in Galileo’s confrontation with the church. Heliocentrism had been Evo Edu Outreach (2008) 1:338–339 DOI 10.1007/s12052-008-0052-9