NATURAL HISTORY OR NATURAL SYSTEM? ENCODING THE TEXTUAL SIGN

The dichotomy of system versus history is a time-honoured issue that has inflicted many scientific disciplines, including biology. Ever since the publication of his Systema Naturae in 1735, Carolus Linnaeus ’ position as father of taxonomy has been established, but his attempt at systematisation has also been severely challenged from time to time by natural historians. This paper will discuss the issue of natural system versus natural history, using Carolus Linnaeus and Charles Darwin as examples. The theoretical point of attack is Darwin's critique of systematics in his Origin of Species and Michel Foucault's critique of classification in his Les mots et les choses. While both Foucault and Darwin criticise Linnaeus for putting nature in the Procrastian bed of classification, the British evolutionist opts for narrativisation to present his version of natural history. This narratological project, though based on scientific observations and experiments, relies heavily on the many devices of textualisation. It can be seen especially in Darwin’s voyage writings; it can also be seen in Linnaeus ’ less systematic writings, such as A Tour in Lapland, despite the latter’s general reservation about rhetoric, especially in his debate with the French naturalists. If one compares the prototype of natural history, i.e., that by Pliny the Elder, one will easily find the long tradition of representing nature mediated by some set of discursive strategies. In this regard, neither Linnaeus nor Darwin is exceptional. An interesting example showing narrative encoding is the textual parallel between the first chapter of Origin of Species and the Book of Genesis, especially the experience o