THE LIFE OF CHARLES DARWIN Charles Robert Darwin, a wealthy British naturalist was born on 12 February 1809 at the family home The Mount in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. He was the fifth of six children, but his parents' second child. His father was Robert Waring Darwin, a wealthy doctor and financier. However, when Darwin was eight years old, his mother, Susannah Wedgwood, died. Darwin was then raised by his older sisters and the maids around his home. Darwin was just a boy who had an interest in nature but not in academia. In 1818, Darwin was sent to a primary school in Shrewsbury where he was a boarder. Later, in 1825, he was admitted to the University of Edinburgh to study medicine with the hope of becoming a doctor like his father. After noticing his little interest in medicine, his father sent him to Christ's College, Cambridge in 1827 to study theology. While at Cambridge, Darwin had a great interest in the study of nature. He enjoyed having a collection of plants, insects and geological specimens. After Darwin graduated from Cambridge in 1831, he was invited to be part of a five-year scientific voyage on the ship HMS Beagle to explore the world. As a young amateur naturalist, he accepted the offer. During this time Darwin read a book by Charles Lyell entitled “Principles of Geology”. This book showed Darwin a better way to understand nature and also suggested that fossil records found in rocks proved that animals existed millions of years ago. He also wrote down his observations in a diary. The most important part of his journey was when he arrived at Galapagos Island in 1835, there Darwin was amazed by the volcanic rocks and turtles he saw. He too ...... middle of paper ...... author of many books and great observer of life, there is no doubt that he had many things to say. Therefore, most of his quotes include: "It is not the strongest species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one that responds best to change" (Darwin, The Origin of Species). However, as far as morality is concerned, “A moral being is one who is capable of reflecting on his past actions and their motivations, of approving some and disapproving others” (Darwin, The Expression of the Emotions). Like any other person, who has the hope of meeting a legend, I would have a lot to discuss with Charles Darwin if I had the chance to meet him. Most of our discussions would be about how he came up with the theory of evolution or what motivated him to take that action, and also what he would probably change about his theories that were controversial at the time..