Pre-darwin theories

Charles Darwin was known for publishing “The Origin of species” and being a part of the process for forming the basic ideas that set forth the Theory of Evolution. However, Darwin is often credited for all of the work that went into finding the conclusion of evolution, when in actuality it was a plethora of scientists all around the world that helped create and form this theory. Some of these scientists were before his time, like Carolus Linneaus, George Cuvier, Charles Lyell and James Hutton. Each of these scientists played a major part in Darwin reaching his conclusive understanding of biological evolution. The leading biological scientist of the mid 18th century was the Swedish botanist Carolus Linneaus. He wrote many books (over 100!) about description and details of nature, but never analyzed it. This wasn’t seen as very strange, since Linnaeus apparently believed that he was just revealing “the unchanging order of life created by God” (Linneaus). His most important contribution to science was his logical classification system for all living things which he proposed in his book Systema Naturae. He used a binomial nomenclature in naming them. He helped scientists identify and classify their findings, with a universal way of ordering them. Another scientist that helped darwin narrow down the possibilities for his final conclusion of biological evolution would be George Cuvier. Cuvier supported the theory of catastrophism as did most other leading scientists of his day. This theory was stated that there have been violent and sudden natural catastrophes such as great floods and the rapid formation of major mountain chains. Plants and animals living in those parts of the world where these disasters took place were often killed off according to Cuvier. Then new life forms moved in from other areas. As a result, the fossil record for a region shows abrupt changes in species. Cuvier's explanation relied solely on scientific evidence rather than biblical interpretation. Taking a shift away from biblical ‘evidence’ is considered a bit risky for their time, but could be overlooked. A careful examination of European geological deposits in the early 19th century led Charles Lyell , to conclude that Cuvier's catastrophism theory was wrong. He believed that there primarily have been slower, progressive changes. In his three volume Principles of Geology, Lyell said that “the earth must be very old and that it has been subject to the same sort of natural processes in the past that operate today in shaping the land.” (Lyell) Lyell provided conclusive evidence for the theory of uniformitarianism , which had been developed originally by the late 18th century Scottish geologist, James Hutton. This held that the natural forces now changing the shape of the earth's surface have been operating in the past much the same way. In other words, the present is the key to understanding the past. This revolutionary idea was instrumental in leading Charles Darwin to his understanding of biological evolution in the 1830's. However, it was not until the late 19th century that most educated people in the world finally rejected the theory of catastrophism in favor of uniformitarianism.