The eminent position of Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913) in the history of evolutionary science is indisputable. But Wallace chose to go beyond what were already emerging as the professional disciplinary boundaries of science, and participated actively in controversial social, political, philosophical, and religious movements. This combination of left-wing politics and a theistic, teleological world view has made it all too easy for his contemporaries, as well as most recent historians, to view Wallace as a bit of a oddball--but brilliant--scientist, who lapsed unfortunately into spiritualism, theism, and radical cultural activism. Yet Wallace's life belies such a facile categorization of polarities. The main theme developed in my paper is that there is an identifiable unity and coherence in Wallace's thought and life. This unity, coupled with Wallace's passion to understand and change the world into which he was born, helps explain his multifaceted and, frequently, highly controversial career. My central theme is that Wallace used evolutionary theory as a springboard for an innovative exploration of the human condition. It is Wallace's unabashed desire to incorporate science into the broader cultural context that makes his career so intriguing--and illuminates certain of our own contemporary concerns about the intertexture of science and society.