Work on the Victorian dinosaur: Histories and prehistories of 19th‐century palaeontology

Abstract

AbstractIn recent studies of Victorian Literature and Science, valuable insights into the history and discursive constitutions of geology, palaeontology, and evolution have often shone a sidelight on the figure of the dinosaur. Few, though, have engaged head‐on with the dinosaur itself as a conceptual category. In discussing why, this article aims to provide the reader with a reading list by which they may themselves begin to explore the Victorian dinosaur—as well as a possible justification for so doing.