Níveis de seleção: uma avaliação a partir da teoria do "gene egoísta"

Abstract

BUENO, M. R. S. Levels of Selection: an evaluation from the theory of “selfish gene”. 2008. 111 f. Thesis (Master Degree ) – Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Filosofia, Universidade de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, 2008. This Master’s thesis studies the controversy over what is the biological level in which natural selection takes place. Emphasis is given to Richard Dawkins’ proposal of the ‘selfish gene’ and to the issues that arise therefrom, which include many questions in the philosophy of biology. We hope that by assessing the impact that the theory of the ‘selfish gene’ has had on the problems of evolution, one may understand its importance. The aim of this study is philosophical, raising questions and clarifying the terms of the debate, without taking side on one or another position. The first chapter presents the historical origins of the debate, starting with the original view of Charles Darwin that the individual is the entity that is effectively selected. We then set out to understand how new empirical problems, specifically the search for biological explanations for altruism, led to proposals of group selection. In the second chapter, we depict how the development of genetics allowed that a new level of selection be proposed: the gene. We analyze Dawkins’ exposition of the point of view of the ‘selfish gene’, especially in the two most important books on the subject: The selfish gene and The extended phenotype. The third chapter examines several philosophical approaches to the question ‘what is a unit of selection?’. Our study is consistent with the thesis that selective forces act simultaneously in different levels.