The Selfish Gene [Paperback]

Do these facts colour my views on "The Selfish Gene"? Yes, no one is completely objective, not even the fiercest of scientists (anyone who tells you they are doesn't understand that the observer is as much a part of the system as the observed).

In my opinion, "The Selfish Gene" represents scientific writing (not just of the popular variety) at its finest. Richard Dawkins' fluid prose and vivid analogies illuminate the most complex of concepts. This is the perfect introductory text to evolutionary thought and I recommend it to lay and professional audiences alike.

As a matter of note, unlike many of the reviewers on Amazon, I reserve 5 stars for the truly exceptional works - those that represent milestones in their genre and medium. I class this book as one.

Dawkin's hard-line on evolution is not universally held in the field (many of his contempories label him an "Ultra-Darwinian") but the conviction with which he outlines his interpretation of Darwin's theory is intoxicating.

Please understand (precious few do) that though many in the scientific community do not completely mirror Dawkins in their perception of evolution, they still believe in it. Too many when viewing the ranks of biologists mistake debate for dissension.

There have been many people who have posed rather flimsy arguments against the claims this book makes. I implore that the prospective reader not be dismayed at any creationist criticisms that are slung against evolution; the same arguments have been repeated year after year for the last 140 since Darwin produced the masterly "The Origin of Species". They have all been effectively countered in the past and hold no water. Their constant recurrance has to do with the ignorance and stubborness of those who wield them; unlike the scientific camp which listens and constantly molds its views based on the validity of new evidence and arguments, that camp steadfastly sticks to their sandy ground.

Richard Dawkins, like the great Stephen Jay Gould, teaches us that there is "a beauty in this view of life" (Darwin, 1959). Spirituality and science are not at odds, irrationality in the face of evidence is the foe, not religion.

To those eager for more, I recommend "The Blind Watchmaker" by Richard Dawkins. This offers an equally well-written (unlike "The Extended Phenotype") and slightly more in-depth, if not as groundbreaking, account of evolution. Also, "Darwin's Dangerous Idea" by Daniel C. Dennett, outlines the social and philosophical impact of the theory of natural selection. Though this tome is daunting in its size, you will struggle to find a better tribute to the idea that changed man's view of himself and his position in the universe.

Yes, arrogant could describe the tone. Still, what's in a tone? Telephone directories are pretty insipid (and ungrammatical) but I still use them now and then. I think my fellow reader is put off because he is suspicious of anyone who presents an argument with this force and passion. My advice - if that bothers you, concentrate on the message rather than the voice. Call me biased, or converted, but Dawkins is entitled to push hard, because.... like it or not, he's probably spot on.

Difficult to read? Well, not for me, but everyone is different. And personally, I find anything more demanding than Peanuts pretty hard going on public transport. So - read it at home - on the sofa instead of a week's worth of EastEnders, or locked in your bathroom if your dad is a Creationist.

And who said books have to be linear experiences? Joan Collins? Skip around. Read ALL the appendices first, twice. I promise I won't tell anyone.

So what if it is "difficult to read"? Since when did everything worthwhile have to be Big-Mac easy? Maybe in some cases what you get out is proportional to what you put in... Ask the shades of Edmund Hillary or Winston Churchill. If you're a lottery winner then this is all patently false, but then you probably wouldn't be bothering with Dawkins or buses.

I'm guilty of feebleness too. Doctor Zhivago is a wonderful novel, but I'm told you only get the full measure of it if you read it in Pasternak's original Russian. Well, I'm ashamed to say I would love to experience it for myself, but I've never made the effort to learn the language. It's a closed book to me. But for all its quality that is just a top bit of fiction. "The Selfish Gene" is - whether you find it easy to accept or not - a lucid account of the almost certainly real, astonishly beautiful process by which the universe managed to produce you, me and an author called Boris who wrote about love and revolution.

And it's already in English! So please give it another go.

He begins by anticipating the outcry of those who must see humans set apart from the rest of life. "Why Are People" examines several behavioral aspects of animals and people. Altruism receives particular attention because the term "selfish" applied to life returns us to the concept of nature "red in tooth and claw" which he wishes to avoid. Genes are not conscious entities who make decisions about their existence or future. Genes are simply replicators, using whatever resources are available to make more of themselves. With luck, the environment in which they do this allows them to survive and continue replicating. If not, the gene, and whatever characteristic it represents, goes extinct. Enough bad matches and a whole species follows the gene into extinction.

In the beginning our very earliest ancestors weren't likely to even have been organisms, but simply chemicals. From this, Dawkins traces the development of the DNA molecule and the organisms that came to carry it in their cells. These organisms, "survival machines" in Dawkins' expression, carry the genes, supplying them with the raw material to continue replicating. It's a discomfiting idea to many to be brought face to face with the idea that they are but "gene machines", but Dawkins shows us in crisp prose that this is simply how life works. Because animals, particularly human animals, seem to exhibit "purpose", there is ongoing objection to the idea that actions can be gene driven. Dawkins explains that genes have had more than three billion years to develop survival techniques that give the appearance of "purposiveness."

The apparent display of purpose is covered through much of the book in his discussion of "game theory". Game theory applied to life has moved well beyond simple win or lose situations. Game situations now involve highly complex interactions in which the players don't win or lose, but survive where possible. Players don't reach a terminal finish through their activities, but reach a modus vivendi. Parents, particularly mothers, sacrifice to bear and raise offspring. Plants, deprived of an optimum niche, adapt to occupy another, less desirable one.

Finally, in what might prove to be the most telling innovation in this book, Dawkins introduces a new descriptor of social behaviour: the meme. The revolution in thinking about why humanity performs some wholly illogical actions has only begun. Ideas, habits, faiths, characteristics that humans like to think separate us from the other animals, arise and replicate just like their biological counterparts. They form, replicate, find a suitable environment and continue replicating. Susan Blackmore's THE MEME MACHINE, is a must companion to this volume with its full and penetrating examination of this aspect of life.

Dawkins' critics are loud and vociferous. It would be pointless to assess motivation in their continued diatribes against this book. Darwin was forced to weather the same type of criticisms for just the same reason: their ideas jerk the pedestal of divine origins from humanity. Even trained scientists find it difficult to shed the concept that because humans have achieved so much, their origins must transcend pure biology. Dawkins' critics nearly all descend to the pejorative, labelling him and his adherents, "Ultra-Darwinists". Few phrases are as meaningless as this one. How one can be "beyond Darwin" eludes definition.

This book is a fine starting point in understanding how life, particularly our form of life, operates. It should be standard classroom fare, both in biology and philosophy classes. If you didn't encounter it there, buy it here. Read it carefully and closely. You will be rewarded with excellent writing, stimulating ideas and you may gain deep insight into what you are. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canads]