Chronology and context: origins and structure of Darwin

1
Chronology and contextorigins and structure of
Darwins long argument

• Darwin and his World
• Charles Darwin, the Copley Medal, and the Rise of
  Naturalism
• Honors 1104 Unity Diversity of Knowledge
• Bemidji State University
• Marsha Driscoll, Elizabeth Dunn, Dann Siems,
  Kamran Swanson

2
Game Introduction

• The setting
• Royal Society of London
• 21 Member Council Meetings
• General Sessions presentation of a paper or
  papers retire to library or club
• The time frame
• Compresses events occurring from Royal Society
  Reform of 1847 to Tyndalls 1874 Efficacy of
  Prayer Resolution (roughly third quarter of 19th
  century)
• Collapses time from death of Prince Albert at 42
  in 1861 to 1864 to a point
• The stakes
• Copley Medal to Darwin or not to Darwin, that
  is the question
• 19th Century winners
• Symbolic endorsement of naturalism over
  supernaturalism by pre-eminent scientific
  academy of the day
• Related issues race, class, gender,
  professionalization of science, science and
  religion
• The factions somewhat nebulous and shifting
  on various issues
• X-men generally committed to the sufficiency of
  naturalistic (materialistic) explanation albeit
  with some misgivings
• A-men committed to a need for theological
  (ideal) causes and justifications

3
Two Key Influences on Darwins Philosophy of
Science

• William Whewell (1794-1866)
• Coined the then controversial term scientist in
  1833 first philosopher of science
• History (1837) and Philosophy (1840) of the
  Inductive Sciences
• Consilience of inductions one class of facts
  coincides with an induction obtained from a
  different class strengthens the fabric of our
  knowledge
• See Wilson, E.O. 1998. Consilience (pro con)
• William Whewell-John Stewart Mill debate
• CONSILIENCE OF INDUCTIONS
• John Herschel (1792-1871)
• Preliminary Discourse on the Study of Natural
  Philosophy (1830)
• SEARCH FOR VERA CAUSA AS SCIENTIFIC IDEAL
• Establish existence of cause
• Establish adequacy of the cause
• Establish responsibility of the cause
• SEARCH FOR VERA CAUSA

4
Origin of Species by Mean of Natural Selection
(1859)Darwins one long argument presents at
least three related arguments

• MAIN ARGUMENT FOR
• NATURAL SELECTION
• A VERA CAUSA ARGUMENT
• (HERSCHEL)
• Existence of selection
• Does selection exist?
• Adequacy of selection
• Can selection account for
• change in species?
• Adaptive fit to environment?
• Origin of new species?
• Responsibility of selection
• Is selection both a necessary and a sufficient
  cause?

• BROADER ARGUMENTS
• CONSILIENCE OF INDUCTIONS
• (WHEWELL)
• Broader argument for transmutation within species
  over time
• Broader argument for descent of different species
  from a common ancestor

Note that one could accept Darwins broader
arguments without buying natural selection as the
responsible mechanism and many did!
See Hodge 1977 and Waters 2003 on structure of
Darwins argument
5
The Structure of the OriginAdapted from Hodge
1977 and Waters 2003
Part Strategy Tactics Chapters
I. Variation and selection under domestication Vera causa existence Establish accepted idea I
II. Variation and selection in nature Vera causa existence Argue from analogy II, III
II. Variation and selection in nature Vera causa competence 1. Make case 2. Consider difficulties IV-V VI-IX
III. Explanatory trials of theory Vera causa responsibility Present evidence favoring responsibility X-XII
III. Explanatory trials of theory Consilience of Inductions Make sense of a large class of disparate facts XIII
Recapitulation Allay fears, convert ready Humility -- Reverie XIV
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The duty of the historian is to restore to the
past the options it once had. Gordon Craig
7
Edinburgh Cambridge (1825-1831)

• Edinburgh medicine (1825-1827)
• Athens of the North
• Materialist tradition
• Transmutation sympathies
• Family tradition father and grandfather Erasmus
  Darwin
• Robe rt Grant invertebrate zoology
  introduced Darwin to transmutationist ideas o f
  Lamarck and Geoffroy
• Darwin roomed with brother Erasmus, five years
  his senior
• Collecting and describing inverts from the Firth
  of Forth
• No taste for medicine
• Fathers comments on Darwins prospect care
  for nothing
• TRANSMUTIONIST IDEAS

• Cambridge theology (1828-1831)
• Had to accept the Thirty-nine article of
  Anglican communion
• Demonstrate competence in new testament Greek
• William Paleys (1802) Natural theology or,
  Evidences of the Existence and Attributes of the
  Deity
• Bridgewater Treatises On the Power Wisdom and
  Goodness of God As Manifested in the Creation
• Rev. Adam Sedgwick (geologist)
• Rev. John Stevens Henslow (botanist)
• Social and professional connections!
• Later Hookers father-in-law
• Introduces Darwin to writing of Augustin Pyrame
  de Candolle and Alexander von Humboldt
• ADAPTATION AND DESIGN

8
Natural SelectionThree (inductive) observations
and two (inescapable) deductions

• Observation 1 Adults on average produce (many)
  more offspring than required for their own
  replacement
• Observation 2 Populations remain relatively
  constant in number (at least they dont increase
  continuously)
• Deduction 1 Therefore, it necessarily follows
  that some (many) offspring must fail to survive
  and/or to reproduce
• IMPORTANT NOTE Deduction 1 in no way implies
  the inevitability of competition. Many offspring
  fall prey to predators, are victims of pathogens
  or parasites, or are victims of environmental
  events.
• The widespread belief (past and present!) that
  natural selection requires competition reflects
  cultural rather than biological foundations!
• Observation 3 Within any population there are
  heritable variations in form and physiology
  (species have no immutable essence)
• Deduction 2 Any heritable variations which
  enhance prospects for survival and reproduction
  will increase in frequency over time

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The Huxley-Wilberforce DebateBritish Association
Advancement of Science -- 30 June 1860

• Rev. Henslow presiding
• In place of Richard Owen
• John Drapers (dull) speech
• Later (1874) wrote The Conflict Between Science
  and Religion
• See also A.D. White Warfare between science and
  theology
• Wilberforce attack
• Huxley response
• Hooker response
• Darwin off taking water cure
• The winner?
• Depends on who you ask!
• BBC Clip PBS Evolution

Captain Fitzroys Outburst During the proceedings
Fitzroy leapt to his feet, pounding his Bible and
shouting, All the truth is here. Fitzroy
committed suicide 30 April 1865 despondent about
his key but unintended role in Darwins success.
10
Clergyman Charles Kingsley (1819-1875) Theistic
naturalism expressed in 1859 Letter to Darwin

• I have gradually learnt to see that it is just
  as noble a conception of Deity, to believe that
  he created primal forms capable of self
  development into all forms needful pro tempore
  and pro loco, as to believe that he required a
  fresh act of intervention to supply the lacunas
  which He himself had made. I question whether the
  former be not the loftier thought.