Origins and Species | A Study of the Historical Sources of Darwinism a

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Origins and Species

ABSTRACT

Originally published in 1991, Origins and Species seeks to understand the historical origins of Darwinism. The book analyses the explanatory problem of species variation to which Darwinian theory was a response, while contrasting the Darwinian with other traditions of the time, in the interpretation of organic diversity. The book looks in detail at both Charles Darwin’s theories and Alfred Russell Wallace’s theories of about plant and animal species and raises the question of the context of Darwinism and that of Plato’s and Aristotle’s understanding of species.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

chapter |3 pages

lij 8

chapter |21 pages

servesasa fam ous lessontome ." The re are "few heroes who lose so little by b e in gapp ro achedasHumbo ld t." The celebratedsavant 's soireeswe re a h ig hpointofLyell 's tour . On thattourLy e11 v ig orouslyde fe ndedtheteachingsofhiso ld mas te ratOx fo rd , W illia mBuck la n d . 153 Butw ith in threeorfouryears , Lye ll hadadop te dthe le adingdoctrinesofthePrinciples , doctrineswh ic hconflictedsharp ly w ith thoseofbo th hiso ld hero an dhis fo rm erteacher . By 1832 studentsofthe se condvo lu meofthePrinciplescou ld read , on thesubjectof "The Introductionof New Spec ie s " : bsueforIefhthereaderccess iv im eeinxttihnecpshreocueldd in ignfcehr , a from th efactslaidpartoftheconstatinotn an odfraeng im ulaa ls ptaenrds , thatthehewillnaturallyinquirewhe th rercothurpselanoftsnmatauyre be , miteap ns arptroovf id thedefortherereare an yab le g lo beshouelcdo , no tmoyaoefpoauiroftheselosses . Isdepopu la te dbo th inthecoeceratarinsye st xetmentth , abt ec t n an d on thelaohenmde ; habit tsh om aetnthevarietyofspeciesshou ld d im in is huntoilreisffoitrt ew ofecrapossibreleaatrirviveesenwer hen that new gyais ne towb an eddeisxptlraayoerdd ? inarOyrb in e g in gap fr hoem no m ti emneontocantimesec , speciescanbecalledintonaturalists ? ^ 4apaendthyeetotbhsaetrvsao ti oanstoonfish " Humbo ld t," saysLyell , " hascharacterisedthesesubjectsas among themysterieswh ic hnaturalsc ie ncecan notreach , and heobservesthattheinvestigationofthe 153 desrochesdSaenesHluemsbo ld t, Essaigeognos tiq uesurleg is ementLlayteelrl , reLjiefcetiaonndLofetBtdeerusx . hIe , m 1 is pheres ( Paris , 1823 ), and m ented in Leona rd G. uWck il lsaonnd , 's 3v5i . ewsLyaerell 's c "The D ev elo pmaaredfoupltl io ynd and en toftheocCu cAecp te tsodfuUDnuixfo ie rmmi ta r ia nism in on S c ie nce ( Paris , e1C96o2n ) g , res99I3n -9 te6rthneatiMoin nd a . lodf 'H Chisatro le irseLdyesell , " 154 Lyell , Principles . Ill , 145 -4 6 .

chapter |2 pages

years , thepointsofdiscussioningeo lo gyh av ebeentrans ferredto new questions , forthemo st partofah ig her and more generalorder . " Exam in a tio nofthepresentoperationofnaturehasled , Lye ll con te nds , tow id esp re adag re ement "a stowh at rocksareofigneous , and w hat ofaqueousorigin , — inwh at m ann er fossilshells , whe th erofseaoroflakes , havebeen im b ed d ed instrata , — how sand may havebeenconver te dintosandstones ." B ut w ith th oseother new ques tio nsof "a h ig herorder , " thereis " still to o much reluctance " asLye ll seesitf " to make a s tr enuouseffort , i n th efirstinstance , tosearchoutanexp la n a ti onintheord in ary econom yofnature . " The new p ro b le mscanbestateds im p ly enough . The searchis " forthecauses why m in eralma sse sareassociated to getherincertaingroups , why th eyarearrangedinacertainorderwh ich isneverinverted ; why thereare many b re aksin th econtinuityof th eseries , why differentorgan ic re m a in sare fo undindistinctsetsofstrata , why thereisoftenanabruptpassage fro manassemb la geofspec ie scon ta in edin one forma tio ntothatinano th e r im med ia te ly super im posed . " JRegrettably , Lye ll comp la in s , i n th efaceofthesep ro b le m s , geologistsh av efeltfreeon ce aga in t o in voke 33I bld . , .

chapter |388 pages

im p o rta ncefor any analysisofLyellian and D a rw in ia nhistoricalgeog ra phy . Foritisthe " recentchangesof th eorgan ic and inorganicwo rld " w h ic h "may be saidtoconstitutethealphabet an d gram m ar ofgeo lo g y ." 39 Thus th epresentgeograph ic aldistributionofplants and a n im a ls ispartofthatalphabet and gram m ar, becausethedistributionoflivingspeciesisaresult and so arecordof th e m ost recentofallchangesintheorgan ic and inorgan ic wor ld s . Presentgeog ra phyistherecordofthelastrep la cemen ts ofextinct by new species . Foritis th eJointresultofthemo st recentextinctions and originationsofspecies ; an dthosemo st recentphysicalgeograph ic alchangeswh ic hhavea llo wedeachlivingspecies , once itoriginatedinoneplace , todispersetothe many p la cesofitspresenthabitation , itspresentcoun tr yorcountries . On thissubjectof " th erecentchangesoftheorgan ic and in organicwo rld " an dthe la w s by w h ic h , we may infer th eyhavebeenregulated , Lye ll fo und no " systemat ic treatisespreviouslywritten . " Books I I and IIIofthePrinciples , saidLyell , w ere t o make good * thatg ap i n th egeo lo gicalliterature . W a lla c e , instressingthat th ePrinciples was thefirstcomp re hens iv esystemat ic treatise on th esubjectsofitssecond an dthirdbooks , was o n ly 39Ibid . , 310 . Ibid .

chapter |6 pages

rangeofcon te mpo ra ry G reek speculation . Itiseasytoforget how lo ngitw as beforetherew as an ylarge body ofo rth odoxChristiantheologicaldoctrine . Itisama tt erofsixorsevenrather th a n one o r tw ogener ationsafterChrist 's dea th before we find , inC le mentofA le xandr ia and hispupilO rig e n , thefirstcomp re hens iv eattemptstoexplicatesystematically , in G reek philosophicalterms , theperfectionofG od, H is relationtothecreation , theun io nof body an dsoul in hum an b e in g s an d so o n ; and much ofwh at these tw o men ta ughtw as far fro mtheeventualor th odoxyoftheChu rc h . Indeed , thefirstcreed in te ndedprimarilytosettletheologicalissues , rather th andiffer encesinethicalop in io norchurchritual , w as thatissued by theCounc il ofN ic aeaof 325 A .D . Aga in , itw as o n ly graduallythat th eChu rc hdef in edthecanonofHo ly Scripture . Foral th oughthegospelsw ere a lw ays , ofcourse , ta kenasrecordsofGod 's w o rd , theaccep ta nceof th e O ld Tes ta mentasadivinelyinspiredtextw as notcomp le te untilthe se condcentury . 143 W ith thecanondefined , itw as notdifficultforaChristiantoseethem ain pointsma rk in goffhis th e o lo g y fro mthatofthevariousG re ekphilosophicalschools . For 142 ChristianityE dw Y o rk , 1957 ), C ( f in Hathiarpstterpchu , The In11b . lished , flLuoenndcoeno18f8G8 ; rereekpIrdinetaesd , o n New 143Ibid . . 316 -1 9 .

chapter |200 pages

toChristian th e is m . 151 And s o , ofcourse , w as P la to n is m . 152 The T im aeu shadtalkedofaFa th e r an d M aker oftheco sm o s. And tolaterwriters , Plato seem ed todistinguishthreeu lt imateorigins , principles , archai : God, M a tte r an d Form , w h ic h th eyalsolistedasthe By Whom, From W hat an dInV iew ofW hat; oras God, M a tte r an dthePattern ; orastheAc tiv e , theMa tte r and thePattern . O rth odoxChristian th e is m w as, ofcourse , toa rg uethatofthesethree , God a lo n e was absolutelyoriginal , an dthatMa tte r an d Form somehow to oktheirorigin from h im . 153 Even in Christ 's lifetime , Philo — a Jew nevercon vertedto th e new church — w as bringingStoic an dPlatonice le men ts together in amonothe is t ic cosm ogony w h ic hsetastrikingprecedentforChristianwriters . CitingPlato , Philogaveas " th ereason why theun iv ersew as made ," that " th eFa th e r an d M aker isgood , and thatbe in g good He d id notg ru dge th ebestk in dofnaturetoma tt e r (o usia ) w h ic hofitselfhadno th in gexcellent , th oughitw as capab le ofb eco m in gallthings . " Philodoesnotderivematter from H a tc h , G * re ^ eTkhIidseaacsc . ou17n5t -7 o7f . Stoicco sm o lo gyisthatg iv e n by 152 th e o lo gyisTe he xcceolmlenptatibilityofP la to n is m w ith ChristianP la to n is m and ItsInflluyenbcroeug (B htoso to unt , in 19A2 . 4 ) E . . Taylor 's 153H a tc h , G reek Ideas . 180 -8 2 .