Darwin and the Nature of Species , livre ebook

296

pages

English

Ebooks

2012

Écrit par
David N. Stamos

Publié par
State University of New York Press

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296

pages

English

Ebooks

2012

Lire un extrait

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne En savoir plus

Publié par

State University of New York Press

Date de parution

01 février 2012

Nombre de lectures

EAN13

9780791480885

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

1 Mo

Since the 1859 publication of On the Origin of Species, the concept of "species" in biology has been widely debated, with its precise definition far from settled. And yet, amazingly, there have been no books devoted to Charles Darwin's thinking on the term until now. David N. Stamos gives us a groundbreaking, historical reconstruction of Darwin's detailed, yet often misinterpreted, thoughts on this complex concept.

Stamos provides a thorough and detailed analysis of Darwin's extensive writings, both published and unpublished, in order to reveal Darwin's actual species concept. Stamos argues that Darwin had a unique evolutionary species concept in mind, one that was not at all a product of his time. Challenging currently accepted views that believe Darwin was merely following the species ascriptions of his fellow naturalists, Stamos works to prove that this prevailing, nominalistic view should be overturned. This book also addresses three issues pertinent to the philosophy of science: the modern species problem, the nature of concept change in scientific revolutions, and the contextualist trend in professional history of science.
Preface
Acknowledgments

1. A History of Nominalist Interpretation

2. Taxon, Category, and Laws of Nature

3. The Horizontal/Vertical Distinction and the Language Analogy

4. Common Descent and Natural Classification

5. Natural Selection and the Unity of Science

6. Not Sterility, Fertility, or Niches

7. The Varieties Problem

8. Darwin’s Strategy

9. Concept Change in Scientific Revolutions

10. Darwin and the New Historiography

Notes
References
Index

Voir

Publié par

State University of New York Press

Date de parution

01 février 2012

EAN13

9780791480885

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

1 Mo

Dar win and the Nature ofSpecies

DavidN.Stamos

Darwin and the Nature of Species

SUNY series in Philosophy and Biology

David Edward Shaner, editor

Darwin and the Nature of Species

David N. Stamos

State University of New York Press

Printed in the United States of America

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.

For information, address State University of New York Press, 194 Washington Avenue, Suite 305, Albany, NY 122102384

Production by Michael Haggett Marketing by Susan M. Petrie

Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data

Stamos, David N., 1957 Darwin and the nature of species / David N. Stamos. p. cm. – (SUNY series in philosophy and biology) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN13: 9780791469378 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN10: 0791469379 (hardcover : alk. paper ISBN13: 9780791469385 (pbk. : alk paper) ISBN10: 0791469387 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Species–Philosophy. 2. Darwin, Charles, 18091882. I. Title. II. Series.

QH83.S748 2007 578'.012–dc22

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

2005036225

In memory of my mentor and friend the late Robert H. Haynes, who enjoyed to the last what he called “the opiate of Darwinism.”

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Contents 

Preface Acknowledgments 1. A History of Nominalist Interpretation 2. Taxon, Category, and Laws of Nature 3. The Horizontal/Vertical Distinction and the Language Analogy 4. Common Descent and Natural Classification 5. Natural Selection and the Unity of Science 6. Not Sterility, Fertility, or Niches 7. The Varieties Problem 8. Darwin’s Strategy 9. Concept Change in Scientific Revolutions 10. Darwin and the New Historiography

Notes References Index

vii

ix xix 1 21

37 65 81 107 131 153 187 207

231 249 267

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Preface 

Looking back, I think it was more difficult to see what the problems were than to solve them. —Charles Darwin (letter to Charles Lyell, September 30, 1859)

The year 1859 marks the beginning of an enormous earthquake, an earth quake that shook the world and continues to shake it to this very day. The earthquake and the consequent tremors were not caused by the gradual shift and strain of conflicting ideas, but by a sudden impact, the publica tion ofOn the Origin of Speciesby Charles Darwin. It started a revolution in thinking, an enormous paradigm shift, the implications of which are still being worked out. Interestingly, at the very core of that revolution is the concept of species. It is important, then, to know exactly what Darwin did with that concept. The problem, however, is that for a variety of reasons scholars (biologists, philosophers of biology, and professional historians of biology) have provided interpretations that just don’t fit the facts. A large part of the reason, as we shall see, was caused by Darwin himself. At any rate, the problem of Darwin on the nature of species, what was the prevail ing view and how he tried to change that view, has yet to be adequately understood and appreciated. The time is definitely overdue for a detailed historical reconstruction. This becomes even more important because the concept of species in biology, from the time of Darwin right up to today, is still far from settled. The purpose of this book is basically fourfold: First and foremost, to provide a full and detailed reconstruction of Darwin’s species concept fo cusing mainly on his mature evolutionary period, to get it right inasmuch as that is possible. In fact the present work breaks entirely new ground and constitutes a major reinterpretation of Darwin on the nature of species, in stark contrast to the literature on this topic, which stretches back over 140

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