- New
-
Topics
- All Categories
- Metaphysics and Epistemology
- Value Theory
- Science, Logic, and Mathematics
- Science, Logic, and Mathematics
- Logic and Philosophy of Logic
- Philosophy of Biology
- Philosophy of Cognitive Science
- Philosophy of Computing and Information
- Philosophy of Mathematics
- Philosophy of Physical Science
- Philosophy of Social Science
- Philosophy of Probability
- General Philosophy of Science
- Philosophy of Science, Misc
- History of Western Philosophy
- Philosophical Traditions
- Philosophy, Misc
- Other Academic Areas
- Journals
- Submit material
- More
Charles Darwin's use of theology in the Origin of Species
British Journal for the History of Science 45 (1):29-56 (2012)
Abstract
This essay examines Darwin's positiva use of theology in the first edition of the Origin of Species in three steps. First, the essay analyses the Origin's theological language about God's accessibility, honesty, methods of creating, relationship to natural laws and lack of responsibility for natural suffering; the essay contends that Darwin utilized positiva theology in order to help justify descent with modification and to attack special creation. Second, the essay offers critical analysis of this theology, drawing in part on Darwin's mature ruminations to suggest that, from an epistemic point of view, the Origin's positiva theology manifests several internal tensions. Finally, the essay reflects on the relative epistemic importance of positiva theology in the Origin's overall case for evolution. The essay concludes that this theology served as a handmaiden and accomplice to Darwin's scienceAuthor's Profile
My notes
Similar books and articles
Charles Darwin's natural selection: being the second part of his big species book written from 1856 to 1858.Charles Darwin - 1975 - New York: Cambridge University Press. Edited by R. C. Stauffer.
Of Orchids, insects, and natural theology: Timing, tactics, and cultural critique in darwin's post-?Origin? strategy. [REVIEW]John Angus Campbell - 1994 - Argumentation 8 (1):63-80.
Charles Darwin's use of theology in the Origin of Species – Erratum.Stephen Dilley - 2013 - British Journal for the History of Science 46 (1):149-149.
Fleeming Jenkin and The Origin of Species: a reassessment.Susan W. Morris - 1994 - British Journal for the History of Science 27 (3):313-343.
Origin of species ; and.Charles Darwin - 1842 - St Petersburg, Fla.: Red and Black Publishers. Edited by Charles Darwin.
The annotated Origin: a facsimile of the first edition of On the origin of species.Charles Darwin - 2009 - Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Edited by James T. Costa.
Darwin’s Sublime: The Contest Between Reason and Imagination in On the Origin of Species. [REVIEW]Benjamin Sylvester Bradley - 2011 - Journal of the History of Biology 44 (2):205 - 232.
Monkeys into Men and Men into Monkeys: Chance and Contingency in the Evolution of Man, Mind and Morals in Charles Kingsley’s Water Babies. [REVIEW]Piers J. Hale - 2013 - Journal of the History of Biology 46 (4):551-597.
The Cambridge companion to the "Origin of species".Michael Ruse & Robert J. Richards (eds.) - 2008 - New York: Cambridge University Press.
Darwin’s place in the history of thought: A reevaluation.Robert J. Richards - 2009 - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 106 (Supplement 1):10056-10060.
The origin of species by means of natural selection, or, The preservation of favored races in the struggle for life.Charles Darwin - 1963 - New York: Modern Library. Edited by Paul Landacre & Douglas A. Dunstan.
The Preface to Darwin’s Origin of Species: The Curious History of the “Historical Sketch”. [REVIEW]Curtis N. Johnson - 2007 - Journal of the History of Biology 40 (3):529 - 556.
Analytics
Added to PP
2015-01-22
Downloads
37 (#431,116)
6 months
8 (#361,319)
2015-01-22
Downloads
37 (#431,116)
6 months
8 (#361,319)
Historical graph of downloads
Author's Profile
Citations of this work
A Critique of Darwin’s The Descent of Man by a Muslim Scholar in 1912: Muḥammad-Riḍā Iṣfahānī's Examination of the Anatomical and Embryological Similarities Between Human and Other Animals.Amir-Mohammad Gamini - 2021 - Journal of the History of Biology 54 (3):485-511.
Darwin’s perception of nature and the question of disenchantment: a semantic analysis across the six editions of On the Origin of Species.Bárbara Jiménez-Pazos - 2021 - History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences 43 (2):1-28.
The metaphor of the architect in Darwin: Chance and free will.Ricardo Noguera-Solano - 2013 - Zygon 48 (4):859-874.
Nothing in biology makes sense except in light of theology?Stephen Dilley - 2013 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences 44 (4):774-786.
The Evolution of Methodological Naturalism in the Origin of Species.Stephen Dilley - 2013 - Hopos: The Journal of the International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science 3 (1):20-58.
References found in this work
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.David Bohm - 1964 - Philosophical Quarterly 14 (57):377-379.
Epistemology in the Age of Neuroscience.Patricia Smith Churchland - 1987 - Journal of Philosophy 84 (10):544-553.
Newton of the Grassblade? Darwin and the Problem of Organic Teleology.John Cornell - 1986 - Isis 77:404-421.
God and natural selection: The Darwinian idea of design.Dov Ospovat - 1980 - Journal of the History of Biology 13 (2):169-194.
PhilPapers logo by Andrea Andrews and Meghan Driscoll.
This site uses cookies and Google Analytics (see our terms & conditions for details regarding the privacy implications). Use of this site is subject to terms & conditions.
All rights reserved by The PhilPapers Foundation
Server: philpapers-web-64dd777598-cl5t5 uwo