The Darwinian controversy of the nineteenth century - Essay Example

The Darwinian controversy of the nineteenth century The XIX-th century is remarkable for its controversial character. It should be mentioned that the most controversial issue of that time was the problem of science and religion. It was a great revolution in human knowledge about their creation. People got new imagination about their nature. The idea of biological evolution has existed since ancient times, notably among Greek philosophers such as Epicurus and Anaximander. However, scientific theories of evolution were not established until the 18th and 19th centuries, by scientists such as Jean-Babtiste Lamarck and Charles Darvin.

The transmutation of species was accepted by many scientists before 1859, but the publication of Charles Darwins On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection provided the first cogent theory for a mechanism by which evolutionary change could occur: natural selection. (Mayr, 2002)Darwins theory nearly shattered the traditional Christian notion that humanity, poised between beast and angel, was literally formed in Gods image. Darwin pointed out, long before we knew that we share 98.5 percent of our genetic material with chimpanzees, that what looks back at us in the mirror is not the face of God but is kin to the earthbound apes.

As the Edinburgh Review warned at the time, "a revolution in thought is imminent, which will shake society to its very foundations by destroying the sanctity of the conscience and the religious sense." (Zimmer, 2002)All the statements of Darwinian Theory were in strong contradiction with the religious views. Darwin was sure that life on Earth is directly connected with the fight for living. In addition the strongest survives and the weakest loses their right for living. According to Darwin’s theory there is always a great resistance and contradiction in nature.

More over Darwin supposed that this theory reflected the life of humans also. This, of course, was totally opposite to religious views, where everything should exist in harmony with each other. Religion considers that life is given to everyone and we should co-exist in the world peacefully. It is interesting that Indian anthropologist Lalita Vidyardi, who devoted many years of her life to the learning of Darwinism, states that Darwinian theory of evolution, caused the ideas of racism in social sciences.

She said that many scientists believed that the civilization and progress in the world were achieved thanks to the white race and in the second part of the XIX-the century the phenomenon of racism was accepted as a fact by a greatest part of western scientists. Opposite to this religion states that everyone is equal before God and has right for living (Larson, 2004).So, it is obvious that the problem of science and religion is still of current importance and it is really difficult to define where the truth is.

Religion as the institution of the greatest secrets of life, where it is impossible to predict the future, will be always a greatest enemy for the scientific knowledge, which is the institution of reason and thinking. Science gives the possibility to make the prognosis the future using the experience of the past. ReferencesLarson Edward J., Evolution: The Remarkable History of a Scientific Theory (Modern Library Chronicles). Modern Library (May 4, 2004).Mayr, Ernst. What Evolution Is. Basic Books (October, 2002).

Zimmer, Carl. Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea. Perennial (October 1, 2002).