The origin of species is a complex and intricate issue. Charles Darwin, a great thinker and evolutionist proposed multiple astounding (and controversial) evolution theories during his lifetime.
He has published a well-known book titled Origin of Species whereby many theories are put forth and discussed in detail. In short, it is difficult to discuss the summary of the origin of species but the following points try to justify this article. The above mentioned book is one of the most important books on modern biology but it also questioned human ethics in a never-before manner.
In the Origin of species overview, he cites natural selection as a primary order of nature and that populations evolve in time due to natural selection. This forms a naturalistic theory of origins.
The understanding that diversity of life came about by common descent (and that there is a branching evolution pattern) was also put forth with subsequent supporting evidence. He proposed some facts while other evolution theories remained as inferences.
Examples of facts include; (1) much of the variation is inheritable, (2) food resources are limited and they remain quite stable over time, and (3) population size remains almost the same despite various fluctuations.
He used artificial breeding (plants and animals) to prove that small changes were most important in evolution. He also proposed that natural selection is a process to preserve the individual and this co-relates to man’s power of selection.
The other point noted is that competition and interdependencies existed in the complex ecological web. In a summary of the origin of species, it was explained that natural selection takes place slowly and the results are not immediate.
However, there is tremendous power in artificial selection as desired characteristics of animals/plants can be easily produced. There was no conclusive evidence on hereditary theory but Darwin managed to prove via observation that variation selection produced huge differences in many generations of selections.
As many of his origins of species overview and theories contradict the Bible, some of these theories remain controversial and often disputed. These arguments may not be easy to contemplate but they brought up fundamental questions of existence and how we became who we are today.
