On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection: or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. (2nd edition)
Charles Darwin
Book Club
On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection: or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. (2nd edition)
8 ways to start a deeper conversation.
Contains spoilers for the entire book.
Discussion topics
Topic 01 of 08
Pigeons and breeders
Why does Darwin begin with domestic pigeons and the work of breeders rather than with nature?
Keep the conversation going
- How does variation under domestication prepare the reader for his argument?
- Did this opening make his later case easier to accept?
There is no single right answer. Bring your own reading.
Discussion topics
Why does Darwin begin with domestic pigeons and the work of breeders rather than with nature?
Keep the conversation going
- How does variation under domestication prepare the reader for his argument?
- Did this opening make his later case easier to accept?
What does Darwin mean by the struggle for existence, and how does Malthus shape the idea?
Keep the conversation going
- Why does he stress that the struggle is often against conditions and not only against rivals?
- How did his examples, such as the cats, mice and humble-bees, change your sense of how nature works?
How would you explain natural selection in your own words after reading Darwin's account?
Keep the conversation going
- Why is it so important to his argument that the process is slow and gradual?
- What does natural selection explain, and what does Darwin admit it cannot?
Which of the difficulties Darwin raises against his own theory, such as the eye or neuter insects, did you find most serious?
Keep the conversation going
- Why do you think he spends so much effort on objections?
- Do his answers satisfy you?
How does Darwin explain complex instincts, such as the bee's hexagonal cells or slave-making ants?
Keep the conversation going
- Why were instincts such a hard case for his theory?
- Which example surprised you most?
Why does Darwin call the geological record imperfect, and why does his theory need that to be so?
Keep the conversation going
- How did you respond to his comparison of the record to a history with most pages lost?
- What has been found since that he could only hope for?
What do the animals and plants of islands like the Galapagos tell Darwin about how species arise?
Keep the conversation going
- Why does geography matter so much to his argument?
- Which piece of evidence in these chapters did you find most persuasive?
How did you respond to the closing image of the tangled bank, and to Darwin's claim that there is grandeur in this view of life?
Keep the conversation going
- Why do you think he mentions the Creator in the final sentence of this second edition?
- Why did his argument provoke so much controversy, and does it still?
There is no single right answer. Bring your own reading.