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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 10 page analysis of biologists Richard Dawkins' book The Selfish Gene in which Dawkins proposes a theory of natural selection that encompasses all human behavior. This theory maintains that the process of natural selection actually works at the level of the gene. Dawkins is, above all else, a Darwinist and the basis for his theory is really quite elegant in its simplicity. Life's complex evolutionary path can be accounted for, according to Dawkins, by simply examining the ways in which genes preserve their own existence by promoting behaviors and characteristics that increase their chances of survival into the next generation. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
10 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_90slfish.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
theory is really quite elegant in its simplicity. Lifes complex evolutionary path can be accounted for, according to Dawkins, by simply examining the ways in which genes preserve their own
existence by promoting behaviors and characteristics that increase their chances of survival into the next generation. Thus, according to this theory, human behavior is largely based on these mechanisms, which
have been arrived at through the process of natural selection. Presumably these characteristics are the ones that best insure the continuation of the genes carried by those individuals.
Dawkins states, "The argument of this book is that we, and all other animals, are machines created by our genes" (2). Genes "want" to be replicated?they are geared for survival;
however, what this survival entails to the host that carries the genetic material?pleasure or pain?is immaterial to the processes involved. While all of this has moral implications, and Dawkins readily
acknowledges this, he is also emphatic that he is not proposing a system of morals based on this information. On the contrary, Dawkins warns that, if anything, his theories should
be taken as a moral warning that a society that expects generous cooperation and unselfish behavior from its citizens will receive very little help from their innate natures. Therefore,
Dawkins advises that society should stress the teaching of generosity and altruism, since he believes that these characteristics are not part of the basic nature of human beings. He believes
that by understanding what our "selfish genes" are up to, humanity can design methods for overriding this primitive self-interest, so that the race, as a whole, may prosper. The
implications of this theory are, of course, quite controversial. The question quickly arises as to whether or not the assertions made by Dawkins have validity. This is something that must
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