Skip to Main Content (Press Enter)
The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
Add The Origin of Species to bookshelf
Add to Bookshelf

Look Inside

The Origin of Species

By Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life

By Charles Darwin
Foreword by Edward J. Larson

By Charles Darwin
Foreword by Edward J. Larson

By Charles Darwin

By Charles Darwin

By Charles Darwin

By Charles Darwin

By Charles Darwin
Foreword by Edward J. Larson

By Charles Darwin
Foreword by Edward J. Larson

Best Seller
Paperback $12.00

Aug 11, 1998 | ISBN 9780375751462

Mass Market Paperback $6.95

Jun 01, 1999 | ISBN 9780553214635

Ebook $5.99

Oct 28, 2008 | ISBN 9780553905731

Ebook $3.99

Nov 01, 2000 | ISBN 9780679641308

All Formats
+
    The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
    Paperback $12.00
    Aug 11, 1998 | ISBN 9780375751462

    Buy from Other Retailers:

    See All Formats (3) +
    • $12.00

      Aug 11, 1998 | ISBN 9780375751462

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • $6.95

      Jun 01, 1999 | ISBN 9780553214635

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • Oct 28, 2008 | ISBN 9780553905731

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • Nov 01, 2000 | ISBN 9780679641308

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    Buy the Ebook:

    About The Origin of Species

    Introduction by Edward J. Larson
     
    Perhaps the most readable and accessible of the great works of scientific inquiry, The Origin of Species sold out its first printing on the very day it was published in 1859. Theologians quickly labeled Charles Darwin the most dangerous man in England and, as the Saturday Review noted, the uproar over the book quickly “passed beyond the bounds of the study and lecture-room into the drawing-room and the public street.” Based largely on Darwin’s experience as a naturalist while on a five-year voyage aboard H. M. S. Beagle, The Origin of Species set forth a theory of evolution and natural selection that challenged contemporary beliefs about divine providence and the immutability of species. This Modern Library edition includes a Foreword by the Pulitzer Prize–winning science historian Edward J. Larson, an introductory historical sketch, and a glossary Darwin later added to the original text.

    About The Origin of Species

    The publication of Darwin’s The Origin of Species in 1859 marked a dramatic turning point in scientific thought. The volume had taken Darwin more than twenty years to publish, in part because he envisioned the storm of controversy it was certain to unleash. Indeed, selling out its first edition on its first day, The Origin of Species revolutionized science, philosophy, and theology.

    Darwin’s reasoned, documented arguments carefully advance his theory of natural selection and his assertion that species were not created all at once by a divine hand but started with a few simple forms that mutated and adapted over time. Whether commenting on his own poor health, discussing his experiments to test instinct in bees, or relating a conversation about a South American burrowing rodent, Darwin’s monumental achievement is surprisingly personal and delightfully readable. Its profound ideas remain controversial even today, making it the most influential book in the natural sciences ever written—an important work not just to its time but to the history of humankind.

    About The Origin of Species

    Introduction by Edward J. Larson
     
    Perhaps the most readable and accessible of the great works of scientific inquiry, The Origin of Species sold out its first printing on the very day it was published in 1859. Theologians quickly labeled Charles Darwin the most dangerous man in England and, as the Saturday Review noted, the uproar over the book quickly “passed beyond the bounds of the study and lecture-room into the drawing-room and the public street.” Based largely on Darwin’s experience as a naturalist while on a five-year voyage aboard H. M. S. Beagle, The Origin of Species set forth a theory of evolution and natural selection that challenged contemporary beliefs about divine providence and the immutability of species. This Modern Library edition includes a Foreword by the Pulitzer Prize–winning science historian Edward J. Larson, an introductory historical sketch, and a glossary Darwin later added to the original text.

    About The Origin of Species

    Introduction by Edward J. Larson
     
    Perhaps the most readable and accessible of the great works of scientific inquiry, The Origin of Species sold out its first printing on the very day it was published in 1859. Theologians quickly labeled Charles Darwin the most dangerous man in England and, as the Saturday Review noted, the uproar over the book quickly “passed beyond the bounds of the study and lecture-room into the drawing-room and the public street.” Based largely on Darwin’s experience as a naturalist while on a five-year voyage aboard H. M. S. Beagle, The Origin of Species set forth a theory of evolution and natural selection that challenged contemporary beliefs about divine providence and the immutability of species. This Modern Library edition includes a Foreword by the Pulitzer Prize–winning science historian Edward J. Larson, an introductory historical sketch, and a glossary Darwin later added to the original text.

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Also by Charles Darwin

    On the Origin of Species
    The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals
    The Descent of Man
    On Natural Selection
    The Descent of Man
    See all books by Charles Darwin

    Also by Charles Darwin

    On the Origin of Species
    The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals
    The Descent of Man
    On Natural Selection
    The Descent of Man
    See all books by Charles Darwin

    Also by Charles Darwin

    On the Origin of Species
    The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals
    The Descent of Man
    On Natural Selection
    The Descent of Man
    See all books by Charles Darwin

    Also by Charles Darwin

    On the Origin of Species
    The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals
    The Descent of Man
    On Natural Selection
    The Descent of Man
    See all books by Charles Darwin

    About Charles Darwin

    Charles Robert Darwin was born in 1809 in Shrewsbury, England, to a wealthy intellectual family, his grandfather being the famous physician Erasmus Darwin. At Cambridge University he formed a friendship with J. S. Henslow, a professor of botany, and that… More about Charles Darwin

    About Charles Darwin

    Charles Robert Darwin was born in 1809 in Shrewsbury, England, to a wealthy intellectual family, his grandfather being the famous physician Erasmus Darwin. At Cambridge University he formed a friendship with J. S. Henslow, a professor of botany, and that… More about Charles Darwin

    About Charles Darwin

    Charles Robert Darwin was born in 1809 in Shrewsbury, England, to a wealthy intellectual family, his grandfather being the famous physician Erasmus Darwin. At Cambridge University he formed a friendship with J. S. Henslow, a professor of botany, and that… More about Charles Darwin

    About Charles Darwin

    Charles Robert Darwin was born in 1809 in Shrewsbury, England, to a wealthy intellectual family, his grandfather being the famous physician Erasmus Darwin. At Cambridge University he formed a friendship with J. S. Henslow, a professor of botany, and that… More about Charles Darwin

    Product Details

    Category: Science & Technology | Classic Nonfiction

    Paperback | $12.00
    Published by Modern Library
    Aug 11, 1998 | 720 Pages | 5-3/16 x 8 | ISBN 9780375751462

    Category: Science & Technology | Classic Nonfiction

    Mass Market Paperback | $6.95
    Published by Bantam Classics
    Jun 01, 1999 | 512 Pages | 4-3/16 x 6-7/8 | ISBN 9780553214635

    Category: Science & Technology | Classic Nonfiction

    Ebook | $5.99
    Published by Bantam Classics
    Oct 28, 2008 | 512 Pages | ISBN 9780553905731

    Category: Science & Technology | Classic Nonfiction

    Ebook | $3.99
    Published by Modern Library
    Nov 01, 2000 | 720 Pages | ISBN 9780679641308

    YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

    Looking for More Great Reads?
    21 Books You’ve Been Meaning to Read
    Back to Top

    Visit other sites in the Penguin Random House Network

    Raise kids who love to read

    Brightly

    Raise kids who love to read

    Today's Top Books

    Today's Top Books

    Want to know what people are actually reading right now?

         An online magazine for today’s home cook

    TASTE

    An online magazine for today’s home cook