The Life of the Caterpillar (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Lyrical Natural History of Caterpillar Instincts, Metamorphosis, and Nineteenth-Century EntomologyBy Jean-Henri Fabre
Length8h 4m
About this audiobook
In The Life of the Caterpillar, Jean-Henri Fabre turns the seemingly humble larva into a subject of intellectual drama and aesthetic fascination. Through patient observation of feeding, moulting, processionary habits, defenses, and metamorphosis, he reveals the caterpillar as an organism of intricate instincts and surprising adaptations. Fabre's style unites scientific precision with lyrical narrative, placing the work within the great tradition of nineteenth-century natural history, where empirical inquiry still conversed intimately with literature. Fabre (1823–1915), the celebrated French entomologist and author of the Souvenirs entomologiques, wrote from a lifetime of fieldwork, teaching, and solitary experiment rather than from laboratory abstraction. His rural Provençal surroundings, modest circumstances, and extraordinary attentiveness to insect life shaped a science grounded in direct encounter. Suspicious of grand theory when unsupported by observation, he made minute lives morally and intellectually compelling. This book is warmly recommended to readers of natural history, entomology, and scientific prose. It rewards both the specialist and the general reader, offering not merely information about caterpillars but a disciplined way of seeing the living world.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.2 (34)
Includes Amazon, Goodreads
GenreScience and Nature
Length8 hrs 4 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateDec 10, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2CHAPTER I
3THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: THE EGGS AND THE HATCHING
4CHAPTER II
5THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: THE NEST; THE COMMUNITY
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6CHAPTER III
7THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: THE PROCESSION
8CHAPTER IV
9THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: METEOROLOGY
10CHAPTER V
11THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: THE MOTH
12CHAPTER VI
13THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: THE STINGING POWER
14CHAPTER VII
15THE ARBUTUS CATERPILLAR
16CHAPTER VIII
17AN INSECT VIRUS
18CHAPTER IX
19THE PSYCHES: THE LAYING
20CHAPTER X
21THE PSYCHES: THE CASES
22CHAPTER XI
23THE GREAT PEACOCK
24CHAPTER XII
25THE BANDED MONK
26CHAPTER XIII
27THE SENSE OF SMELL
28CHAPTER XIV
29THE CABBAGE-CATERPILLAR
30Memorable Quotes
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