The role of metaphor in Darwin and the implications for teaching evolution

Abstract

ABSTRACT:This article is about the role of metaphor in scientific knowledge formation and reasoning. These issues are studied by means of an example of the theory of evolution through natural selection. The premise is that the theory of evolution contains a set of problems regarding metaphor. A second premise is that these problems have to be handled in one way or another when trying to learn, explain, or discuss the theory. How metaphor plays a role in Darwin's writings is analyzed through examples taken from On the Origin of Species. Which metaphors are used by Darwin and which problems do they solve and raise, respectively? It is shown how Darwin uses a variety of metaphors, and that he grapples with this issue. The findings are discussed in terms of the implications for teaching evolutionary theory. Some inherent difficulties in learning the theory of evolution, and more generally abstract complex scientific knowledge, are discussed.

Why Don’t People Think Evolution Is True? Implications for Teaching, In and Out of the Classroom

“…One of Darwin's greatest innovations was to argue (following the approach advocated by his friend Charles Lyell) that one could use observed small-scale change in organisms to infer (and explain) large-scale change. The first chapter of the Origin of Species, for example, is mainly about pigeons because Darwin wanted to convince his readers of the validity of extrapolating from small changes produced by artificial breeding over short time intervals to larger changes produced by natural selection over geological time [this is sometimes discussed as an example of Darwin's use of metaphor, which is also a means of extending reasoning from one idea to another (Young 1985;Ruse 2005;Pramling 2008;Gregory 2009b;Largent 2009)]. Change under domestication and similar phenomena familiar to most people today, such as antibiotic and pesticide resistance, or changes in the HIV virus (Freeman and Herron 2007;Gregory 2009b) are frequently acknowledged (as they must be) by creationists, who otherwise reject the validity of extrapolating from such "microevolution" to "macroevolution" (Johnson 1991).…”

El problema de la teleología y la metáfora del diseño en biología: cuestiones epistemológicas e implicancias didácticas

“…Lewens (2004) menciona tres razones a favor de la interpretación metafórica: (1) Ha habido poco cambio en el uso que los biólogos hacen del lenguaje teleológico en los últimos dos siglos, (2) los términos teleológicos son más frecuentes en textos de divulgación y suelen ser usados entre comillas y (3) aunque los biólogos usan con frecuencia los términos teleológicos en su habla informal, no es frecuente encontrarlos en las publicaciones técnicas. Algunos autores consideran que esta metáfora se utilizaría con fines meramente heurísticos o comunicativos y que, por lo tanto, sería eliminable (Mahner y Bunge, 2000;Pramling, 2009). Ruse (2008Ruse ( , 2003Ruse ( , 2000, por el contrario, sostiene que el MESN es teleológico porque implica un recurso necesario a la MD.…”

“…Darwin, en particular, hizo un uso extensivo de las metáforas (Gould, 2004, Noguera Solano, 2013Ruse, 2008Ruse, , 2003. Algunas de las metáforas de la biología evolutiva han recibido mucha atención tanto por parte de filósofos y biólogos como de educadores y didactas (Pramling, 2009). Por ejemplo, la metáfora según la cual el proceso de diversificación filogenético es como un árbol (Archibald, 2014;Pietsch, 2012) y la analogía entre la selección artificial y la selección natural (Evans, 1984;Gildenhuys, 2004;Sterrett, 2002;Theunissen, 2012;Wilner, 2006) han sido muy analizadas.…”

How Evolution Generates Complexity Without Design: Language as an Instructional Metaphor

“…These problems could be overcome simultaneously by using an analogy that demonstrates both complexity and evolution in an accessible manner. Evolutionary analogies are useful because they allow exploration of concepts and mechanisms without a detailed knowledge of biological systems (Pramling 2008). The principles of biological evolution have been applied to diverse fields, from culture to cosmology.…”