Darwinism (Science 3)

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2010:

Formerly available as 136-102 and as a 3rd year subject with the code 672-315. Students who have completed

136-102 or 672-315 Darwinism are not eligible to enrol in this subject

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website : http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

This subject will provide students with an exciting and stimulating introduction to the origins and implications of Charles Darwin's revolutionary theory of evolution by means of natural selection.

We begin by exploring the pre-Darwinian cosmos, a place where an omnipotent God designed and ordained the natural world, and where nature was viewed through the lens of the Bible. But during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries this view was challenged by scientists and philosophers. We explore the impact of these ideas, particularly: the new geology that challenged the Biblical stories of Creation and the Great Flood; the observations of plants and animals that began to suggest common descent; the evolutionary theories that preceded Darwin's own; and the fraught socio-economic context that arguably helped inspire Darwin's vision of a natural world steeped in struggle.

Particular emphasis is placed upon Darwin's life, and the influence of society and culture upon his worldview. Here we explore the voyage of the Beagle as a watershed in Darwin's life and thinking. For five years he crisscrossed the oceans and circumnavigated the world, collecting specimens and observing nature. His experiences upon the voyage led him to question contemporary approaches to the origins of species, and to develop his own theory of evolution. But for many years he not make his views public, only admitting them to a close circle of friends, until a letter from Alfred Wallace prompted him hurriedly to publish Origin of Species in 1859. Why did Darwin delay? We discuss this issue in detail.

The appearance of Origin caused a sensation, and we explore the impact of his work and the vigorous debates that surrounded it as a case study in the creation of scientific legitimacy and authority. We then chart how his theory was challenged and refined by generations of biologists, particularly Mendelian genetics. But equally important to the course is the application of evolutionary theory to the huge questions of religion, politics, warfare, colonialism, economics, as well as race, class and gender, from the late nineteenth until our own day. Explorations of Social Darwinism and Eugenics are fundamental aspects of this course, as is the issue of Darwinism’s difficult relationship with god.

We conclude with a discussion of Darwin's legacy both in terms of the relationship between science and religion, and the emergence of evolutionary approaches to understanding the human mind and behaviour.

• an effective grasp of the history and historiography (i.e. how historians have written about over time) of Darwin and evolutionary theory;
• a sound critical ability, enabling the effective analysis and synthesis of the historiography;
• the ability to express a clear and sophisticated opinion about Darwin and Darwinism both to experts and to interested outsiders; and,
• the ability to undertake independent research and reading within the field, including the use of library resources (e.g. finding a book in the open stacks, or using Supersearch), and other online resources.

• Janet Browne, Darwin’s Origin of Species: A Biography (New York: Grove Press, 2008)

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

• develop skills in written and oral communication.
• conduct independent research.
• make appropriate use of primary and secondary sources in mounting an argument.
• form defensible judgements based on a critical evaluation of conflicting arguments.