Reflection paper on: The Making of a Theory – Darwin, Wallace,
and Natural Selection
The short documentary showed how the two naturalists came up with the answer to the question
of where species came from. After seeing the film, I realized that in order for men of that era to obtain an
education or even make a discovery, a person's financial capability must be considered. The same thing is
true in the present, where most of us are unable to attend school and obtain an education.
Aside from their curiosity and love of science, money was a critical factor in Darwin's and Wallace's
theories.
I'm astounded by how enthusiastic these two men are about science. Despite Wallace's promise
not to sail again and endanger his life, he continued his search. Furthermore, being seasick all of the time
did not impede Darwin's voyage and discovery. To make a breakthrough, one must endure all of the pain
and face all of the challenges. As the saying goes, "no pain, no gain."
Despite my admiration for Darwin, I still regard him as inferior to Wallace. Because he was
afraid of being destroyed, he did not have the courage to share his ideas and evidence. However, on the
other hand. Wallace promptly forwarded his findings to Darwin for a second opinion. He had only just
regained control of his will when he realized he would lose the credit. Although I can't blame him for
acting that way because he grew up in a society that believes in special creation. The revolutionary ideas
of the two naturalists, if not handled carefully, could lead to their demise. Their discovery could be
considered a heresy, which means that your opponent could be not only the church, but the entire country
that believes in Church doctrine.
The revolutionary concept that existing species evolved from other species can give us the
impression that we are all interconnected. Natural selection explained evolution by describing how
heritable traits change populations over generations. I believe that natural selection is still at work, and
that the characteristics that humans and animals have today may not be the characteristics that they have
in the future.
Regardless of who gets credit for the theory of species origins, Wallace caved and let Darwin take
the credit. Although, in my opinion, Wallace deserves just as much credit as Darwin. Competition is one
of the driving forces of natural selection, but these two scientists did not compete with one another. They
became friends and have both achieved success in their lives. I suppose one of the morals of the story is
that we should prioritize our relationships with other people and how we impact them over the end of life.
People must not be treated as a means to an end, but as a companion to each other's end.