THE VERY TITLE OF DARWIN'S
BOOK, THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES,
IS A BIT OF A JANGLE TO THE
OLD FASHIONED WAY OF THINKING
OF IT.
SPECIES WERE ETERNAL.
THEY DIDN'T HAVE BIRTHS,
THEY DIDN'T DEVELOP.
ONE THING DIDN'T
TURN INTO ANOTHER
ANY MORE THAN YOU HAD THE
ORIGIN OF PRIME NUMBERS.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN?
PRIME NUMBERS ARE ETERNAL.
SOME NUMBERS ARE PRIME AND
SOME NUMBERS AREN'T AND THAT'S
ALL THERE IS TO IT.
THAT WAS MORE OR LESS THE VISION
THAT PEOPLE HAD ABOUT SPECIES
BEFORE DARWIN HISTORICIZED
EVERYTHING IN THE NATURAL WORLD
AND SAID, THINGS HAVE
HISTORIES AND THEY DEVELOP OUT
OF OTHER THINGS.
AS DARCY THOMPSON
ONCE SAID, EVERYTHING
IS THE WAY IT IS
BECAUSE IT GOT THAT WAY.
AND THAT'S A VERY
FUNDAMENTAL DARWINIAN IDEA.
IT GOT THAT WAY FROM
BEING SOMETHING ELSE.
OR ITS ANCESTORS
WERE SOMETHING ELSE.
AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS
THAT BETWEEN THE EARLIER
THING AND THE LATER
THING, THERE'S
GOTTA BE A SERIES OF STEPS,
MAYBE TWO, MAYBE 20, MAYBE
20 MILLION.
AND DAY TURNS INTO
NIGHT, NONLIVING TURNS
INTO LIVING, UNCONSCIOUS
TURNS INTO CONSCIOUS.
AND TO SUPPOSE THAT
THERE'S THIS SHARP LINE--
ON THE LEFT, THE
UNCONSCIOUS THINGS,
ON THE RIGHT, THE
CONSCIOUS THINGS,
ON THE LEFT, THE THINGS
THAT AREN'T ALIVE,
ON THE RIGHT, THE
THINGS THAT ARE
ALIVE-- THAT FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN
ASSUMPTION OR PRESUMPTION
BREAKS DOWN.
AND SO WE HAVE TO LEARN
TO DEAL WITH THIS PROBLEM
OF CONTINUITY.
