Why Evolution Is True: Chapter-by-Chapter Analysis

What Is Evolution?

Jerry Coyne's Why Evolution Is True identifies six elements that together constitute the theory of evolution: (1) evolution itself; (2) gradualism; (3) speciation; (4) shared origins; (5) natural selection; and (6) nonselective evolutionary change mechanisms (Coyne, 2009). Of these, the most fundamental is the concept of evolution itself, which implies the genetic modification of any given species over time. Over many generations, species may transform into substantially different organisms because of DNA modifications that originate in the mutation process. Gradualism, the second element, describes how significant evolutionary transformations — such as the transition from reptiles to birds — unfold across many generations rather than all at once.

The subsequent elements can be considered two sides of the same coin. It is a remarkable fact that although innumerable living species exist, every one of them shares a small number of basic characteristics: the biochemical pathways used to generate energy, the standard four-letter DNA code, and the way that code is deciphered and converted into proteins within the body (Neuner, 2012). This observation is consistent with the view that all species can be traced back to a single common ancestor that possessed these characteristics, which were then inherited by its descendants. If evolution entailed only slow genetic transformation within a single lineage, the world would contain just one greatly evolved species. In reality, Earth harbors more than ten million living species and approximately 250,000 known fossil species. The diversity of life raises a vital question: how does such variety arise from a single ancestral form? The third evolutionary concept — speciation, or splitting — helps answer this question (Neuner, 2012).

Coyne's argument that evolution is a true occurrence is well supported. Every line of evidence gathered since Darwin's time points clearly to the fact that life on Earth evolves and that every species is related to every other. The belief that evolution has no basis or no impact on our species is difficult to sustain in light of this evidence. That said, it is important to distinguish between Darwinism and evolutionism more broadly. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck was himself an evolutionist who preceded Darwin, and Darwin was in turn influenced by Lamarck, particularly regarding the use and disuse of organs. Biologists are expressing increasing discontent with the traditional Darwinism that Coyne champions and that figures such as Pinker, Dawkins, and Dennett have popularized. Experts increasingly accept that a more pluralistic approach to evolution is needed, which explains the emergence of Third Way evolution (Vecchi, 2009).

References

Coyne, J. A. (2009). Why evolution is true. Penguin.

Neuner, K. (2012). Why Evolution Is True — Notes & Review. Retrieved November 22, 2016, from https://vialogue.wordpress.com/2012/05/06/why-evolution-is-true-notes-review/

Vecchi, D. (2009). Review — Why Evolution is True. Retrieved November 22, 2016, from http://metapsychology.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=book&id=4953