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The English Pupil | Introduction

"The English Pupil" by Andrea Barrett appears in Barrett's highly acclaimed collection of eight stories, Ship Fever and Other Stories (1996). Like all the stories in the book, this one is about science and scientists, and it focuses on the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778). Linnaeus was famous for the innovative way in which he classified and named the three kingdoms of the natural world, animal, vegetable, and mineral. His work marked the dawn of a new era in natural history. Linnaeus also sent many of his pupils on travels all over the world, where they discovered new species, used Linnaeus's methods to classify them, and brought specimens back to Sweden.

"The English Pupil" is set at Hammarby, Linnaeus's country estate in 1777, when he is old and confused and has only a few weeks to live. He looks back on his life with a mixture of pride and regret. Barrett skillfully distills a wealth of significant historical and scientific facts about Linnaeus and his followers and weaves them into a compelling narrative that explores not only Linnaeus's life and work but also the depth and complexity of the relationships between the old master and his young disciples, many of whom died on their travels.

The English Pupil Summary

"The English Pupil" begins outside the town of Uppsala, Sweden, on a very cold late December afternoon in 1777. Carl Linnaeus, the famous naturalist, who is now seventy years old and dying, is riding in a horse-drawn sleigh. He orders his coachman to take him to his country estate, Hammarby, which lies beyond city limits. The coachman agrees only reluctantly, since he has been told by his employers not to take the sleigh outside of the city.

Linnaeus watches the landscape go by and thinks of Lappland, which he had explored when he was in his mid-twenties, learning about the natural world, which had amazed him with its beauty.

Linnaeus has suffered a series of strokes and now his once-famous memory has almost gone. He tends to forget what he is doing and where he is, he cannot remember the names of plants and animals or of places and people. His legs, one arm, his bladder and part of his face are paralyzed. He can barely speak.

When they arrive at Hammarby, Pehr, the coachman, lifts Linnaeus up and carries him into the house. Then he unhitches the horses from the sleigh and shoves the sleigh into the house, near the fireplace. He lifts Linnaeus back into the sleigh and begins to light a fire. Then after Linnaeus gestures toward his tobacco and pipe, Pehr lights the pipe and places it in Linnaeus's mouth. Linnaeus is happy to be at Hammarby; no one but Pehr knows where he is.

Linnaeus remembers his favorite dog, Pompey, who is now dead, and the names of some of his students, those whom he had taught at the university in Uppsala as well as private students who had come to Hammarby. They were of many nationalities, including an Englishman, who, Linnaeus thinks, is "still around." He remembers taking the students out to the botanical gardens in the city and keeping them there for twelve or thirteen hours at a stretch.

Pehr interrupts his thoughts, saying that his family will be looking for him. Linnaeus knows this is true and reflects that his family always wants something from him. His wife, Sara Lisa, always told him there was not enough money, and she was worried about their son, Carl Junior, who is lazy, and their three daughters, who need new clothes.

Linnaeus thinks back to his achievements in creating a system for the naming of plants. He had named almost everything, and he had become... » Complete The English Pupil Summary