In 1858, Darwin faced an awkward situation when he received Alfred Russel Wallac
ID: 165279 • Letter: I
Question
In 1858, Darwin faced an awkward situation when he received Alfred Russel Wallace’s manuscript entitled, On the tendency of Varieties to depart indefinitely from the original type. He immediately recognized that Wallace’s paper made many of the same points as he had developed in formulating his version of what we now call Natural Selection. Darwin’s first impulse was to, as requested, facilitate the publication of Wallace’s paper, and continue working on his book. Several of Darwin’s colleagues, however (notably Lyell and Hooker), arranged the joint presentation of 1858 in order to establish equal credit for their independent discovery. What would you have done if you were in Darwin’s situation, or what would you have advised him when presented with the facts of the situation? Finally, while Many of their points were similar, describe at least one way in which they made a unique contribution.
Explanation / Answer
If I would have been at Darwin's place,I would have given equal credit to work of Wallace. I would also have pressed for the joint presentation of both Wallace's work and Mine work. One thing we have to understand here, it was research of Wallace that have way to Darwin an idea in formulating his idea of Natural selection.
Darwin emphasized competition between individuals of the same species to survive and reproduce, whereas Wallace emphasized ecological pressure on varieties and species forcing them to become adapted to their local environment or become extinct. It has been suggested that Wallace's emphasis on the importance of adaptation to the environment for survival and Darwin's emphasis on competition between individuals of the same species was at the root of their disagreement over the importance of sexual selection.