What Darwin Really Said

With a foreword by Stephen Jay Gould

First published in 1859, Charles Darwin's theory of evolution inalterably transformed our view of the history of life on the planet-and along with it, how we understand ourselves, our origins, and our place in the world. As we stand before the dawn of a new century, this theory is still the source of heated debate. In medicine, psychology, sociology, and politics, controversial new ideas are being espoused to claim Darwin for their legitimacy, while religious opponents continue to press for their alternative theory of "creationism" to be taught in the public schools. To being light where there has been much heat, What Darwin Really Said offers an excellent introduction to this great thinker's discoveries, his view of human development, and the endurance of his theories against the test of time.

In Praise of Charles Darwin: Foreword by Stephen Jay Gould, xi

1. Introduction, 3
2. Youth, 7
3. Cambridge: Conflicting Influences, 11
4. The Voyage of the "Beagle", 17
5. The Scientist Comes Home, 33
6. The Origin of the Species by Natural Selection
7. The Descent of Man, 49
8. Darwin and His Predecessors, 59
9. The Rise of Genetics, 63
10. The Uniqueness of Man,  71
11. Evolution at the Psycho-Social Stage, 75
12. Darwin and the Poets, 83
13. Darwin and Christianity, 89
14. Darwin's Place in the History of Thought, 97

Bibliography, 113
Index, 115