This paper traces the history of conceptual schemes addressing the relation of embryology and evolution theory in the UK from the time of Darwin up to the present. The constant, but poorly defined, influence of the concept of recapitulation is particularly emphasised. Other concepts considered include; heterochrony, allometry, the organizer, fields, induction, morphogenesis and positional information. The interrelation of embryogenesis and evolution with genetics is a theme that runs throughout this historical account. The paper seeks to identify long-term historical forces that have shaped the ongoing development of the field of evo-devo. It is suggested that, as compared to other countries, no enduring tradition in experimental embryology took root in the UK and, perhaps as a result, theoretical approaches to the issues gained prominence. It is also argued that present-day evo-devo perspectives, in their UK manifestations, owe much to the influence of Waddington, particularly on the work of Wolpert. As a result of the longterm trends key aspects of the nature of embryogenesis (particularly morphogenetic cell movement and the role of germ layers) have become neglected, if not entirely forgotten. The paper seeks to emphasise the potential value of the concept of recapitulation in revealing pathways and mechanisms in the evolution of new morphological structures.
...MoreSimilar Citations
Article
Voss, Julia;
(2010)
The Curatorial Turn in the Darwin Year 2009
(/isis/citation/CBB001022448/)
Book
Brown, William;
Fabian, Andrew C.;
(2010)
Darwin
(/isis/citation/CBB001023129/)
Book
Barbara Larson;
Sabine Flach;
(2013)
Darwin and Theories of Aesthetics and Cultural History
(/isis/citation/CBB412176834/)
Book
Michael Ruse;
(2016)
Darwinism as Religion: What Literature Tells Us about Evolution
(/isis/citation/CBB247868178/)
Book
Bowler, Peter J.;
(2007)
Monkey Trials and Gorilla Sermons: Evolution and Christianity from Darwin to Intelligent Design
(/isis/citation/CBB000774288/)
Thesis
Miriam Shulman Piilonen;
(2019)
Resonating Subjects: Music and Emotion in Victorian Evolutionary Thought
(/isis/citation/CBB648068070/)
Book
Kolchinsky, E. I.;
(2010)
Charles Darwin and Modern Biology
(/isis/citation/CBB001023106/)
Article
Marco Mazzeo;
(2013)
Gli errori di Darwin? Evoluzione e storia naturale
(/isis/citation/CBB744523130/)
Article
Shapiro, Adam R.;
(2014)
Darwin's Foil: The Evolving Uses of William Paley's Natural Theology 1802--2005
(/isis/citation/CBB001420094/)
Article
Hull, David L.;
(2011)
Defining Darwinism
(/isis/citation/CBB001023980/)
Article
Setoguchi, Akihisa;
(2009)
Darwin Commemorations and Three Generations of Historians of Biology
(/isis/citation/CBB000932559/)
Book
Ruse, Michael;
(2013)
The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Darwin and Evolutionary Thought
(/isis/citation/CBB001211881/)
Book
Michael Ruse;
(2021)
Philosophy after Darwin
(/isis/citation/CBB952503073/)
Book
Dilley, Stephen;
(2013)
Darwinian Evolution and Classical Liberalism: Theories in Tension
(/isis/citation/CBB001420122/)
Book
Levine, George Lewis;
(2006)
Darwin Loves You: Natural Selection and the Re-enchantment of the World
(/isis/citation/CBB000772748/)
Book
Curtis N. Johnson;
(2019)
Darwin's Historical Sketch: An Examination of the 'Preface' to the Origin of Species
(/isis/citation/CBB352478446/)
Article
Depew, David J.;
(2010)
Darwinian Controversies: An Historiographical Recounting
(/isis/citation/CBB001032812/)
Article
Peterson, Erik L.;
(2011)
The Excluded Philosophy of Evo-Devo? Revisiting C.H. Waddington's Failed Attempt to Embed Alfred North Whitehead's “Organicism” in Evolutionary Biology
(/isis/citation/CBB001250035/)
Article
Hall, Brian K.;
(2005)
Betrayed by Balanoglossus: William Bateson's Rejection of Evolutionary Embryology as the Basis for Understanding Evolution
(/isis/citation/CBB001230140/)
Book
Evelleen Richards;
(2020)
Ideology and Evolution in Nineteenth Century Britain: Embryos, Monsters, and Racial and Gendered Others in the Making of Evolutionary Theory and Culture
(/isis/citation/CBB059744955/)
Azimuth
Science and Education
Journal of Experimental Zoology. Part B, Molecular and Developmental Evolution
History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences
East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal
Be the first to comment!