ABSTRACT

It can be argued that evolution as the primary theory of biology and as the fullest scientific explanation of living beings is being displaced by genetic science. The writings of Richard Dawkins provide the most prominent example of genetic rhetoric since he is unafraid to take the logical implications of genetic evolutionism to their conclusion, stating that all significant behaviors, especially human behaviors, are determined by genes. Physically, genes are entities observable under an electron microscope that are known to directly control certain aspects of every organism's shape, size, and even behavior by means of complex but increasingly understood chains of biochemical reactions. The informational aspect of the gene is reflected in the fact that Dawkins has invented a new term, "meme", which not only rhymes with "gene" but also attempts to give the same clarity to ideas that genes gives to evolution.