"In October 1838, that is, fifteen month after I had begun my systematic inquiry, I happened to read for amusement Malthus on Population, and being well prepared to appreciate the struggle for existence which everywhere goes on from long- continued observation of the habits of animals and plants, it at once struck me that under these circumstances favorable variations would tend to be preserved and unfavorable ones to be destroyed. The results of this would be the formation of a new species. Here, then I had at last got a theory by which to work" (Charles Darwin, from his autobiography, 1876).
Charles Darwin was influence by many philosophers, economists and writers. One of his main influenced was Thomas Malthus, who wrote "Essay on the Principle of Population" (1798) The central theme of his essay was that human population growth would always overpower food supply growth, creating perpetual states of hunger, disease and struggle. So there will be competition and the most fit will get the food, reproduce, and spread their genes. The natural, ever present struggle for survival caught the attention of Darwin, and he extended Malthus' principle to the evolutionary scheme. Darwin considered that some of the competitors in Malthus' perpetual struggle would be better equipped to survive. Those that were less able would die out, leaving only those with the more desirable traits. Through his research Darwin concluded that this ongoing struggle between those more and less fit to survive would produce a never-ending progression of changes in the organism. In its simplest form, this is evolution through natural selection.
Thomas Malthus's work helped inspire Darwin to refine natural selection by stating a reason for meaningful competition between members of the same species. He saw the concept relative to all species not just humans.
I believe that Charles Darwin couldn't have developed his theory of natural selection without theories of Malthus, because before reading Malthus' ideas, Darwin had thought that living things reproduced just enough individuals to keep populations stable. He realized that the population theory could be applied to all aspects of organic life and provided a solid base in which natural selection could be studied.
Darwin had strongly believed in Malthus' theory and he used the population theory to help explain his own theory about natural selection in his book.
The church had extremely influenced on people in England in 19th century. Darwin knew that his theory which did not depend on supernatural processes would create problems. His ideas provoked a harsh and immediate response from religious leaders in Britain. They argued that his theory directly contradicted many of the core teaching of the Christian faith.
Darwin's work has helped fuel intense debates about religion and science then and now, so it's worthwhile to consider what his own religious beliefs were.
www.usmp.berkeley.edu/histrory/malthus.
Excellent summary of Malthus' influence on Darwin. His worked opened up Darwin's eyes to the competitive nature of natural populations of organims, human and otherwise.
ReplyDeleteGood observations on Darwin and his concerns over how his work would be received by the community given its religious implications.