Seite - 499 - in The Origin of Species
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CHAPTER XV
Recapitulation and Conclusion
Recapitulation of the objections to the theory of Natural Selection—
Recapitulation of the general and special circumstances in its
favour—Causes of the general belief in the immutability of
species—How far the theory of Natural Selection may be ex-
tended—Effects of its adoption on the study of Natural History
— ^Concluding remarks.
AS this whole volume is one long argument, it may be
convenient to the reader to have the leading facts
- and inferences briefly recapitulated.
That many and serious objections may be advanced against
the theory of descent with modification through variation
and natural selection, I do not deny. I have endeavoured to
give to them their full force. Nothing at first can appear
more difficult to believe than that the more complex organs
and instincts have been perfected, not by means superior to,
though analogous with, human reason, but by the accumu-
lation of innumerable slight variations, each good for the
individual possessor. Nevertheless, this difficulty, though
appearing to our imagination insuperably great, cannot be
considered real if we admit the following propositions,
namely, that all parts of the organisation and instincts offer,
at least, individual differences—that there is a struggle for
existence leading to.the preservation of profitable deviations
of structure or instinct—and, lastly, that gradations in the
state of perfection of each organ may have existed, each good
of its kind. The truth of these propositions cannot, I think,
be disputed.
It is, no doubt, extremely difficult even to conjecture by
what gradations many structures have been perfected, more
especially amongst broken and failing groups of organic
beings, which have suffered much extinction ; but we see so
many strange gradations in nature, that we ought to be ex-
499
zurĂĽck zum
Buch The Origin of Species"
The Origin of Species
- Titel
- The Origin of Species
- Autor
- Charles Darwin
- Verlag
- P. F. Collier & Son
- Ort
- New York
- Datum
- 1909
- Sprache
- englisch
- Lizenz
- PD
- Abmessungen
- 10.5 x 16.4 cm
- Seiten
- 568
- Schlagwörter
- Evolutionstheorie, Evolution, Theory of Evolution, Naturwissenschaft, Natural Sciences
- Kategorien
- International
- Naturwissenschaften Biologie
Inhaltsverzeichnis
- EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 5
- AN HISTORICAL SKETCH of the Progress of Opinion on the Origin of Species 9
- INTRODUCTION 21
- Variation under Domestication 25
- Variation under Nature 58
- Struggle for Existence 76
- Natural Selection; or the Survival of the Fittest 93
- Laws of Variation 145
- Difficulties of the Theory 178
- Miscellaneous Objections to the Theory of Natural Selection 219
- Instinct 262
- Hybridism 298
- On the Imperfection of the Geological Record 333
- On the Geological Succession of Organic Beinss 364
- Geographical Distribution 395
- Geographical Distribution - continued 427
- Mutual Affinities of Organic Beings: Morphology: Embryology: Rudimentary Organs 450
- Recapitulation and Conclusion 499
- GLOSSARY 531
- INDEX 541