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Charles Darwin is born
He was born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. He had five other siblings and was the son of a wealthy doctor and financier named Robert Darwin. His mother, Susannah died when he was 8 years old. -
Darwin sets sail on the Beagle
Darwin set sail on the HMS Beagle in December of 1831 from Plymouth, England. The majority of the trip was spent sailing around South America. His most famous observation took place when he was studying organisms on the Galapagos Islands. He noticed similarities between the finches on the island and the finches from the mainland, but showed specific characteristics that were specific to their habitat. The theory that was deduced from this was the theory of evolution through natural selection. -
Charles Darwin's 'On the Origin of Species' is Published
Darwin's publication of this book introduced his theory that populations evolve over the course of several generations through the process of natural selection. He also presented a surplus of evidence showing that the diversity of life is from the branching pattern of evolution and common descent. He also included evidence from this findings on the voyage of the Beagle. -
Darwin's "The Descent of Man" was Published
"The Descent of Man" is a book describing the evolutionary theory as it applies to humans and species his theory of sexual selection. It addresses evolutionary psychology, evolutionary ethics, differences between the human races, differences between sexes, the superiority of men to women, and the relevance of the evolutionary theory to society. -
Charles Darwin dies
Darwin was given a state funeral and was buried in the Westminster, Abbey. This was a high honor being that it would be close to the burial sites of Isaac Newton and John Herschel. This honor is given mostly to royal persons but only five non-royals (including him) were granted the honor of a uK state funeral during the 19th century. -
Summary of Darwin's contribution to the philosophy of science
Charles Darwin was the first philosopher to theorize a non-religious notion of evolution. He was met with much backlash but as we know, his findings are absolutely critical to the growth of evolutionary science. His voyage on the Beagle was pivotal as he was able to observe the similarities/differences between the mainland and island finches. From there, he was able to deduce a more human-oriented evolutionary theory. Overall, Charles Darwin is an extremely influential philosopher. -
Educational Youtube Video
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MLA citations of Darwin's Major works
Darwin, Charles, 1809-1882. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. London :John Murray, 1859. Darwin, Charles. The Descent of Man: And Selection in Relation to Sex. London: J. Murray, 1871.