This chapter presents the following content: Darwin introduces a revolutionary theory; the Darwinian revolution challenged traditional views of a young earth inhabited by unchanging species; in the origin of species, Darwin proposed that species change through natural selection; Darwin’s theory explains a wide range of observations. | Chapter 22 Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life Overview: Darwin Introduces a Revolutionary Theory A new era of biology began on November 24, 1859 The day Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection The Origin of Species Focused biologists’ attention on the great diversity of organisms Figure Darwin made two major points in his book He presented evidence that the many species of organisms presently inhabiting the Earth are descendants of ancestral species He proposed a mechanism for the evolutionary process, natural selection Concept : The Darwinian revolution challenged traditional views of a young Earth inhabited by unchanging species In order to understand why Darwin’s ideas were revolutionary We need to examine his views in the context of other Western ideas about Earth and its life The historical context of Darwin’s life and ideas Figure Linnaeus (classification) Hutton (gradual geologic change) Lamarck (species can change) Malthus (population limits) Cuvier (fossils, extinction) Lyell (modern geology) Darwin (evolution, nutural selection) Mendel (inheritance) Wallace (evolution, natural selection) 1750 American Revolution French Revolution . Civil War 1800 1850 1900 1795 Hutton proposes his theory of gradualism. 1798 Malthus publishes “Essay on the Principle of Population.” 1809 Lamarck publishes his theory of evolution. 1830 Lyell publishes Principles of Geology. 1831–1836 Darwin travels around the world on HMS Beagle. Darwin begins his notebooks on the origin of species. 1837 Darwin writes his essay on the origin of species. 1844 Wallace sends his theory to Darwin. 1858 The Origin of Species is published. 1859 Mendel publishes inheritance papers. 1865 Resistance to the Idea of Evolution The Origin of Species Shook the deepest roots of Western culture Challenged a worldview that had been prevalent for centuries The Scale of Nature and Classification of Species The Greek philosopher Aristotle | Chapter 22 Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life Overview: Darwin Introduces a Revolutionary Theory A new era of biology began on November 24, 1859 The day Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection The Origin of Species Focused biologists’ attention on the great diversity of organisms Figure Darwin made two major points in his book He presented evidence that the many species of organisms presently inhabiting the Earth are descendants of ancestral species He proposed a mechanism for the evolutionary process, natural selection Concept : The Darwinian revolution challenged traditional views of a young Earth inhabited by unchanging species In order to understand why Darwin’s ideas were revolutionary We need to examine his views in the context of other Western ideas about Earth and its life The historical context of Darwin’s life and ideas Figure Linnaeus (classification) Hutton (gradual geologic change) Lamarck (species can
