The discovery of fossils of extinct species was explained by theories such as catastrophism. It rejected Enlightenment philosophers such as David Hume who had argued for naturalism and against belief in God. The Church saw natural history as revealing God's underlying plan and as supporting the existing social hierarchy. The Church of England dominated the English scientific establishment. Although Darwin changed his field of interest several times in these formative years, many of his later discoveries and beliefs were foreshadowed by the influences he had as a youth.īackground and influences Erasmus Darwin, Charles Darwin's paternal grandfather, helped influence Darwin's later religious views.Ī child of the early 19th century, Charles Robert Darwin grew up in a conservative era when repression of revolutionary Radicalism had displaced the 18th century Enlightenment. More significantly, it led to his interest in natural history, which culminated in his taking part in the second voyage of HMS Beagle and the eventual inception of his theory of natural selection.
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