The idea of evolution: it fascinates some of us, disturbs others, and leaves only a very few people indifferent. In a major new interpretation of evolutionary theory, Michael Ruse pinpoints the common source of this attraction and discomfort. A renowned writer on evolutionary theory and its history, Ruse has long been sensitive to the fact that many people—and not simply religious enthusiasts—find something deeply troubling about much of what passes for science in evolutionary circles. What causes this tension, he finds in his search of evolutionism's 250-year history, is the intimate relationship between evolution and the secular ideology of progress.
Ubiquitous in Darwin's time, the idea of an unceasing improvement in life insinuated its way into evolutionary theory from the first. In interviews with today's major figures in evolutionary biology—including Stephen Jay Gould, Edward O. Wilson, Ernst Mayr, and John Maynard Smith—and in an intimate look at the discoveries and advances in the history and philosophy of science, Ruse finds this belief just as prevalent today—however it might be denied or obscured. His book traces the delicate line between those who argue that science is and must be objective and those who deem science a "social construction" in the fashion of religion or the rest of culture. It offers an unparalleled account of evolutionary theory, from popular books to museums to the most complex theorizing, at a time when its status as science is under greater scrutiny than ever before.
Michael Ruse is the former Lucyle T. Werkmeister Professor of Philosophy at Florida State University and Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University of Guelph. He is a Guggenheim Fellow, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, a Gifford Lecturer, and the author or editor of more than sixty books.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Progress and Culture
2. The Birth of Evolutionism
3. The Nineteenth Century: From Cuvier to Owen
4. Charles Darwin and Progress
5. Evolution as World View
6. The Professional Biologist
7. Evolution Travels West
8. British Evolutionists and Mendelian Genetics
9. Discipline Building in Britain
10. The Genetics of Populations
11. The Synthesis
12. Professional Evolutionism
13. Contemporary Debates
14. Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Credits
Index
What People are Saying About This
Robert J. Richards
A book that will instruct, excite, and infuriate a large readership. It makes for compelling reading, even if at times you want to throw it across the room. — Robert J. Richards, University of Chicago
