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Charles Darwin was an analytical fellow when developing his theory of evolution.
So too, it appears, when it came to thinking about love.
A new Field Museum exhibit on him opening Friday includes his notes on the pros and cons of marrying.
Ultimately the allure of a "nice soft wife on a sofa with a good fire" won out over his concerns of missing out on "conversation of clever men at clubs." He married his first cousin, Emma Wedgwood, in 1839 when both were 30. The couple had 10 children and remained together until Darwin's death in 1882.
It was a tough call, though, given his balance sheet he titled "Marry Not Marry." Under the positives of having a wife, his list included:
• "Constant companion (and friend in old age.)"
• "Object to be beloved and played with -- better than a dog, anyhow."
• "Someone to take care of house."
• "Music and female chit-chat."
• "Good for one's health."
• "Children (if it Please God.)"
Darwin's potential negatives also included:
• "Less money for books."
• "Terrible loss of time."
• Erosion of "freedom to go where one likes."
• "Forced to visit relatives and bend in every trifle."
• "Expense of children."
• "Anxiety ... responsibility."
Still, a wife, he would later observe, was "that most interesting specimen in the whole series of vertebrate animals." Wrote Darwin: "There is many a happy slave."
