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Reactions to Darwinism

When Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species in 1859, reactions were many and varied, ranging from outright condemnation to Thomas Huxley's famous exclamation, "How stupid of me not to have thought of that" (quoted in Thomas Huxley). Many scientists and naturalists criticized Darwin's theories, possibly because of earlier belief in Lamarckism, and attempted to provide numerous counterexamples. Moreover, though the fact of evolutionary change was not really doubted in scientific circles, the prominence of Darwin's work brought it into the sight of religious leaders, who immediately saw its implications for Christian ideas of creation.

The Contents of The Origin of Species

Charles Darwin was a careful, thorough man; he delayed publishing The Origin of Species for years, while he thought of possible objections to his theory and tried to respond to them with counterexamples and appropriate explanations. When The Origin of Species was finally published, it contained carefully documented examples of divergent evolution and (what we call) adaptive radiation, as well as carefully reasoned arguments for the reality of natural selection and well-thought-out responses to all objections he could conceive. He also provided numerous examples of what exactly would disprove his theory, and suggested studies that could be undertaken to prove natural selection as the shaping force of evolution.

Thomas Huxley, "Darwin's Bulldog"

One of the first scientists convinced by Darwin's case for natural selection was Thomas Huxley, who would become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his spirited defense of natural selection. A popular anecdote demonstrating Huxley's wit and passion in his defense of Darwinism involves a debate with Archbishop Samuel Wilberforce over the reality of natural selection. Wilberforce asked Huxley if he was descended from an ape on his grandmother's or grandfather's side; accounts differ on exactly what Huxley said next, but he indicated a preference for descent from an ape over the use of influence to ridicule scientific discourse.

Huxley is also known for his intense dislike of progressivism, or the idea (generally associated with Lamarck) that organisms "want" to evolve, or that organisms tend to evolve "upward" towards some distant goal. Huxley also criticized some of Darwin's ideas, including his emphasis on slow, gradual evolutionary change.

Asa Gray

Asa Gray, and American botanist, was a close friend of Charles Darwin. He became not only America's leading plant specialist, but also America's most famous supporter of many of Darwin's ideas. Gray was an early example of a person who managed to combine devout Christianity with a strong dedication to evolutionary ideas. He vigorously defended natural selection as a force of evolutionary change, but also believed that organisms had an inherent ability to change form, originally imbued by a divine creator.

Religious Objections to Darwinism

Many religious leaders, especially American Protestant fundamentalists, immediately saw the implications of Darwin's theory on the origin of mankind, and objected accordingly. The President of the Rochester Theological Seminary argued that evolution was only God's way of bringing his designs into the world. Charles Hodge, an American Calvinist, published an attack on Darwinism called What is Darwinism? in which he argued that the human eye is too perfect to have come about by natural selection, and that to deny design is to deny God. (Reading creationist literature will show that these arguments are alive and well today.)

Friedrich Nietszche

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche became familiar with the implications of Darwin's work as well, though he took a somewhat different perspective on it. Nietzsche used Darwinian ideas to analyze the development of moral values in human culture. Nietzsche also discussed adaptation in the same context, and he had a modern, anti-progressivist idea of complexity in the biological world: "The richest and most complex forms - for the expression 'higher type' means no more than this - perish most easily: only the lowest preserve an apparent indestructibility" (quoted in Darwin's Dangerous Idea, Daniel Dennett, p.466n).

Notions of Progress

Darwinism also seemed to fit well with prevailing notions of progress that were common during his era. Many people at the time believed in the idea that humans were destined for continuous social, cultural, and technological progress. Fitting with this notion is the concept of the Great Chain of Being, an idea elaborated by numerous philosophers (including Descartes, Spinoza, and Liebniz) and given its catchy title by Arthur Lovejoy. This idea placed God at the top of the chain, followed by angels, mankind, and a succession of animals, plants, and finally inorganic matter (and sometimes nothingness). The idea of evolution fit well with this image, implying that living beings had somehow climbed this ladder, culminating in the pinnacle of evolutionary progress: the human being.

Looking Further: Links and References

The following links and references are of use in the study of early reactions to Darwinism and to natural selection.

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