Analysis Of Stephen Jay Gould 'Biology In Context'

Pledged: Dakota Frencl

Biology in Context, Book Analysis

Rocks of Ages

The respective areas of science and religion always seem to be overlapping, or stepping on the other area’s toes. In his book, Stephen Jay Gould addresses the topic of Non-Overlapping Magesteria, or NOMA. Gould examines the principles of NOMA as a solution to the supposed false conflict between religion and science. (Pg. 6) He starts off his argument on NOMA by telling a story of “Two Thomas’s.” The first Thomas is from the bible, of which he makes three appearances in the Gospel of John. The second Thomas, is a Reverend Thomas Burnet. Thomas the Apostle defends the magesteria of science in the wrong magesteria of faith, while the Reverend Thomas proclaims religious ideas within the magesteria of science.

Gould continues his base argument on NOMA by comparing religion against science and some of the past disputes between the two subjects. He compares the ideas of an absent clock-winder, to that of one that is ever-present to press it upon the hour to make it chime, which alludes to a later argument of intelligent design versus natural development. (Pg. 49-95) After the clock-makers discussion, Gould discusses two of the largest figures in evolutionary biology, Charles Darwin and Thomas Henry Huxley, and a liberal clergyman, Charles Kingsley. Gould talks about the correspondence between Huxley and Kingsley, where Kingsley reaches out to his skeptical friend Huxley with faith and Huxley retorts in turn with natural science against religion. Huxley thanks Kingsley for his condolences, but argues against immortality for humans but not for the rest of the natural world, when humans are but an insignificant speck in the whole of the natural world. Hu...

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...n of NOMA is fully supportive, and all for the promotion of NOMA. I believe that science and religion should be separate, as two different disciplines, as well as the separation of church and state. We shouldn’t consolidate church and state, for if we did their would be no end to the confilicts, of which there are many now. So we can only imagine the future conflicts after drawing religion and science together, which Gould compares to mixing oil and water.

Stephen Jay Gould was an American scientist of many different studies, such as: paleontology, biology, and was a historian of science. Most of his career was spent teaching at Harvard University and working for the American Museum of Natural History. Gould also taught biology and evolution at New York University. His biggest contribution to the progress of evolutionary theory, was his book, Rocks of Ages.