Mihai-Valentin Cernea
Abstract
This paper explores two philosophical issues related to Darwin’s treatment of the
sterile castes of insects in the Origin of Species. The first aim is to review the scholarly
articles on the subjects of Darwin’s acceptance or rejection of natural selection acting at
levels above that of the individuals. The second aim is to see whether Darwin’s position
on group selection informs in any way contemporary debates on group selection and
multilevel selection. The paper arrives at the conclusion that, there is significant
evidence in the Origin that Darwin did see natural selection acting at the level of the
community, but it is hard to say anything more than evolutionary biology is compatible
with multilevel selection if we take this point into account. Many present-day
individualistic and pluralistic accounts of natural selection that seek legitimacy from
Darwin’s views on the subject open up to charges of anachronism.