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On the Origin of Species: By Means of Natural Selection (Dover Thrift Editions: Science) Paperback – June 23, 2006

Name: On the Origin of Species: By Means of Natural Selection (Dover Thrift Editions: Science): Charles Darwin: 0800759450060: Amazon.com: Books
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"The Origin is one of the most important books ever published, and a knowledge of it should be a part of the intellectual equipment of every educated person. . . . The book will endure in future ages so long as a knowledge of science persists among mankind." — Nature
It took Charles Darwin more than twenty years to publish this book, in part because he realized that it would ignite a firestorm of controversy. On the Origin of Species first appeared in 1859, and it remains a continuing source of conflict to this day. Even among those who reject its ideas, however, the work's impact is undeniable. In science, philosophy, and theology, this is a book that changed the world.
In addition to its status as the focus of a dramatic turning point in scientific thought, On the Origin of Species stands as a remarkably readable study. Carefully reasoned and well-documented in its arguments, the work offers coherent views of natural selection, adaptation, the struggle for existence, survival of the fittest, and other concepts that form the foundation of modern evolutionary theory. This volume is a reprint of the critically acclaimed first edition.

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Print length

336 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Dover Publications
Publication date

June 23, 2006
Dimensions

5 x 1.25 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

0486450066
ISBN-13

978-0486450063
Lexile measure

1450L
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On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin Dover Thrift Editions Science

"A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there."

During an expedition to Africa and South America, Darwin continued his studies in natural science and began writing about his theories of natural selection. His work led to the publication of On the Origin of Species.

Published amid a firestorm of controversy in 1859, this is a book that changed the world.

Reasoned and well-documented in its arguments, it offers coherent views of natural selection, adaptation, the struggle for existence, survival of the fittest, and other concepts that form the foundation of evolutionary theory.

“One general law, leading to the advancement of all organic beings, namely, multiply, vary, let the strongest live and the weakest die.”

“Man selects only for his own good: Nature only for that of the being which she tends.”

Dovers Thrift Edition Library of classic literature - a long standing mission of exceptional value

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About the Author

Charles Darwin was born in England in 1809 and attended the University of Edinburgh to study medicine. When he decided against that vocation, he enrolled at Cambridge where he earned a degree in theology. During an expedition to Africa and South America, Darwin continued his studies in natural science and began writing about his theories of natural selection. His work led to the publication of On the Origin of Species, a book that changed the world.

Charles Darwin: Original Thinking
Each generation of students comes to Darwin's epoch-making works, several of which are the basis of our publishing program in biology and related fields: The Essential Darwin, 2006; The Descent of Man, 2010; The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, 2006;and On the Origin of the Species, 2006.

In the Author's Own Words:

"A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there."

"I feel most deeply that this whole question of Creation is too profound for human intellect. A dog might as well speculate on the mind of Newton! Let each man hope and believe what he can."

"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science."

"There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved."

"Man with all his noble qualities, with sympathy which feels for the most debased, with benevolence which extends not only to other men but to the humblest living creature, with his god-like intellect which has penetrated into the movements and constitution of the solar system — with all these exalted powers — Man still bears in his bodily frame the indelible stamp of his lowly origin." — Charles Darwin

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dover Publications; Dover Giant Thrift E edition (June 23, 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0486450066
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0486450063
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 1450L
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.1 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 1.25 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,715,344 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,372 in Natural History (Books)
- #1,667 in Nature Writing & Essays
- #3,075 in Ecology (Books)

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4.3 294 ratings

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Charles Darwin

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Charles Robert Darwin, (/ˈdɑːrwɪn/; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist and geologist, best known for his contributions to evolutionary theory. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestors, and in a joint publication with Alfred Russel Wallace introduced his scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection, in which the struggle for existence has a similar effect to the artificial selection involved in selective breeding.

Darwin published his theory of evolution with compelling evidence in his 1859 book On the Origin of Species, overcoming scientific rejection of earlier concepts of transmutation of species. By the 1870s, the scientific community and much of the general public had accepted evolution as a fact. However, many favoured competing explanations and it was not until the emergence of the modern evolutionary synthesis from the 1930s to the 1950s that a broad consensus developed in which natural selection was the basic mechanism of evolution. In modified form, Darwin's scientific discovery is the unifying theory of the life sciences, explaining the diversity of life.

Darwin's early interest in nature led him to neglect his medical education at the University of Edinburgh; instead, he helped to investigate marine invertebrates. Studies at the University of Cambridge (Christ's College) encouraged his passion for natural science. His five-year voyage on HMS Beagle established him as an eminent geologist whose observations and theories supported Charles Lyell's uniformitarian ideas, and publication of his journal of the voyage made him famous as a popular author.

Puzzled by the geographical distribution of wildlife and fossils he collected on the voyage, Darwin began detailed investigations and in 1838 conceived his theory of natural selection. Although he discussed his ideas with several naturalists, he needed time for extensive research and his geological work had priority. He was writing up his theory in 1858 when Alfred Russel Wallace sent him an essay that described the same idea, prompting immediate joint publication of both of their theories. Darwin's work established evolutionary descent with modification as the dominant scientific explanation of diversification in nature. In 1871 he examined human evolution and sexual selection in The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, followed by The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals. His research on plants was published in a series of books, and in his final book, he examined earthworms and their effect on soil.

Darwin has been described as one of the most influential figures in human history; he was honoured by burial in Westminster Abbey.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Henry Maull (1829–1914) and John Fox (1832–1907) (Maull & Fox) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

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fresh set of 'young and rising naturalists' will 'do good service by conscientiously expressing his conviction

Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2015

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Wait until the last chapter - it's worth the slog. The major part of the book repeatedly shows us evidence of evolution, with minor comments on how this or that theory is incompatible with the 'creation' of species. It is almost painfully repetitive, until the last chapter. But then he makes a change of direction and elaborates (in his impeccable politeness) how the old ideas of creation are about the die down, and that even eminent scientists of his era won't accept his theory. But he states that a new, fresh set of 'young and rising naturalists' will 'do good service by conscientiously expressing his conviction; for only thus can the load of prejudice by which this subject is overwhelmed be removed.'

4 people found this helpful

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Russell C. Smith

On the Origin of Species

Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2008

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This book is a classic. It is very readable for such an important scientific work. Many people think they know what this book says, but they settle for second hand information--usually incomplete and sometimes just wrong. This book should be read by anyone interested in science, education, religion and planet Earth.

17 people found this helpful

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Brett D. McLaughlin

Important reading for Christian and unbeliever alike

Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2009

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This is a strange book to review for me. I rate it based on its importance in affecting the world, and its strength of writing and cause. I also believe -- as I am a Bible-believing Christian who takes God at his word and believes in Creation -- that any serious Christian should read Darwin. I find far too many are willing to accuse him, deride him, and laugh at him, all the time largely ignorant of what he has actually written.

Understanding Darwin well requires you understand two key principles from which he works:

1. God is not the Creator of man, woman, and all life, as detailed literally in Genesis 1 and 2 (regardless of whether the days mentioned are 24-hour days or ages/epochs).

2. There must be a singular explanation -- complex, but singular -- for all life as currently seen.

(It should be noted here that the Biblical view demands that (1) be true and (2) not be. Other than God's glory, the Biblical view does /not/ provide explanation for why a bat's wing and a man's hand have the same structure, nor does it attempt to.)

Given (1) and (2), though, Darwin has to be considered simply brilliant. He has taken the impossibly variation of life and constructed a theory that -- albeit with some serious holes that he himself acknowledges -- provides a reasonable explanation for what the world exhibits. Of course, Darwin himself spends much of his time saying he "supposes," "suspects," and "imagines." In other words, he is hypothesizing. A lynch pin of his theory about the geological record, for example, compels him to say, "...nor do we know how ignorant we are." He is, then, supposing that he has overcome this ignorance himself. This is a logical problem, to say the least.

Ultimately, there are hundreds of important things to be stated about Darwin, but they can be summed up in this: the spirit of God active in the Christian will compel him to ultimately regard Darwin as incorrect, for his premise is one absent of God; and the natural man apart from God will be appealed to as he must justify his unbelief, the world around him, and seek an excuse to disbelieve God. This is Romans 1 and 1 Corinthians 2.

The conclusion of the matter? Whether you believe in Jesus Christ or disbelieve, you should read Darwin. He is better speaking for himself then your friends who have also not read him. I say this to the atheist and agnostic as well; so many suppose that Darwin said what he did not, and reveal their ignorance as much as the Christian who ignorantly decries Darwin on the same grounds: ignorance.

6 people found this helpful

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Mary

Beautiful classic by a man who truly loves and respects animals

Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2013

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Do yourself a favor and read (or at least skim) this classic! His writing is beautiful in a 19th century way and, though some say that Darwin is an anti-Christian figure, I think his reverence for animals is far more Christian than the approach of those who think of their species as God's special creatures who get to do whatever they want (extinguish, mass slaughter, strip for skin or fur) with members of other species.

Of course this book is a must-read for students of biology, ethology, evolution (or anti-evolution theory) and social history.

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Aidan M

Science at its best

Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2020

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Science has a lot of thankful advice and knowledge from such legendary scientists such as naturalist Charles Darwin. Great book!

One person found this helpful

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matt n.

readable

Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2016

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Darwin goes a little overboard with his canary, dog, and pidgin soliloquies.

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Zoë

Good book

Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2020

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Dry read but great book if you’re into it. Wonderful quality from seller.

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Ramon

Excellent book. Although the bio literature have evolve quite ...

Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2016

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Excellent book. Although the bio literature have evolve quite a lot from this book, the theories and premises stated here are the very bases of the modern view of evolution. A must read for every person who loves science.

One person found this helpful

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Mayank Roy

Original and Authentic book

Reviewed in India on August 28, 2019

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It is an unabridged[completely] republication of original book is “On the origin of species by means of natural selection”authored by Charles Darwin curely conserved in library of London originally first published by John Murray in 1859.

Alison

A great read

Reviewed in France on June 17, 2017

Verified Purchase

Great value for money, this book is informative and interesting for anyone who likes biology, science, or evolution. However, the book I received had a different cover than the one pictured here, although not a big deal for me perhaps this would be something to consider.

One person found this helpful

George

Don't bother

Reviewed in Australia on May 18, 2021

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I was bored reading this over 50 yrs ago and I was equally bored reading it again, I'm glad I only paid $1, that's all it worth.

Olivier

An intricate book about doing science the right way.

Reviewed in Canada on June 10, 2014

Verified Purchase

As a non native english speaker, I found this book to be a good sport to read. Sometime you'll need to read twice or thrice a paragraph to fully grasp the meaning, but if you are studying in science in the first place, you'll have to do that for almost every essay that you'll read for the rest of your life so... what's wrong in adding another one. Also, the way this man approach science and discoveries is truly respectable and I think we should all be learning from him.

One person found this helpful

Arne Matthias Krüger

Charles Darwin - Observer and profound thinker

Reviewed in Germany on November 7, 2015

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Charles Darwin is a scientist in an original and true sense, that means his findings do not depend on economic funding objectives at all but on observation, knowledge and his biologic skills alone. Looking at ~150 years of history becomes apparent that he has not always be understood in this original sense. That is why we (everyone interested in human behavior and evolution) have to read this book! It is really one of the most influential at all.

Arne Matthias Krüger, Germany, Stuttgart

4 people found this helpful

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"A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there."

Published amid a firestorm of controversy in 1859, this is a book that changed the world.

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From the Publisher

"A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there."

Published amid a firestorm of controversy in 1859, this is a book that changed the world.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

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About the author

Charles Darwin

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