Work · Science & Human Sciences
On the Origin of Species
Natural selection as the engine of evolution.
Introduction
Darwin had been working on his theory since the late 1830s but published only after Alfred Russel Wallace sent him a manuscript with similar ideas; papers by both were read to the Linnean Society in London in 1858. The book, which Darwin called an “abstract” of a larger work, appeared on 24 November 1859; the first printing of 1,250 copies was taken up by booksellers at once. It argues from domestic breeding, the struggle for existence, geographical distribution and the fossil record, and discusses objections openly in a chapter of their own. About humans Darwin said almost nothing. The phrase “survival of the fittest”, borrowed from Herbert Spencer, entered only the fifth edition (1869).
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Connections
Taken up in
- Hereditary Genius1869 · Francis Galton
- The History of Human Marriage1891 · Edvard Westermarck
- On Strength1895 · Yan Fu
- On Evolution (Tianyanlun)1898 · Yan Fu
- Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution1902 · Peter Kropotkin
- Experience and Nature1925 · John Dewey
- Darwin's Dangerous Idea1995 · Daniel Dennett
Answered in
- Creative Evolution1907 · Henri Bergson
Criticized in
- The Refutation of the Materialists1881 · Jamal al-Din al-Afghani
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