Running Head: Gould Summary/Response Essay Gould Summary/Response Essay In the concluding paragraphs of Stephen Jay Gould’s essay ‘Nonmoral Nature,’ double quotes Gould argues that through natural selection, nature regulates itself. According to him, ichneumons laying its agr eggs on a host caterpillar should not be seen as cruelty but as a way of regulating nature. He terms it inappropriate to question “nature[ ]” as it has to take its course. In his view the strategy works for ichneumons[ ] and the ichneumons have outmaneuvered the caterpillar in the evolutionary game. He views evolution to be changing and that some day in the future the caterpillar will develop some adequate defense against ichneumons. The probability of that happening [ ] though [ ] is very little wc. Gould compares natural selection to the “mills of God,” which grinds agr slowly and the products are “aesthetically, morally and intellectually repulsive to us” these two quoted phrases come from Julian Huxley—be careful to attribute quotes accurately (Gould). Natural selection is an important phenomenon of regulating nature even though it seems cruel towards the weak in the evolutionary game. Thesis? This statement identifies “natural selection” but does not present an argument in response to Gould’s claims in the last two paragraphs of his essay. See my notes on your first draft. Natural selection is a law that regulates nature. See my comments on your first draft. In the passage, the ichneumon represents the habits of a large number of animals. The group of wasps has provoked “the problem of evil” among natural theologians. The wasps live their larva life as parasites, which then feed on the bodies of the host animals belonging to their own phylum, athropoda. The adult ichneumon broods their agr young ones into the appropriate host (Gould). The host is later inconvenienced when it is almost entirely consumed. Different animals [ ]too [ ] feed on others. The lion feeds on impalas, humans feed on goats (?)[ ] and so on. That ref has been viewed as a cruel act. When much thought is given to the ichneumon case, the caterpillars mod are naturally regulated from destroying the crops. If the ichneumon does not feed on the caterpillar, there would be an imbalance. The crops would be greatly destroyed by the large numbers of caterpillars that feed on the crops. The other race of animals that are dependent on the crops will then perish, as the crops to feed on will not be available. Humans[ ] too[ ] contribute to the “cruelty” of nature. Connection to thesis? Just like the chneumon, humans feed on other vertebrates of the kingdom animalia. Man, who belongs to the subphylum vertebrata[ ] feeds on cows, goats [among other animals’ meat belonging to the same subphylum, vertebrates.] awk phrasing In order to put the meat on the table, a human has to first hunt the animal. The animal undergoes human’s cruelty whereby the human slaughters the animal in order to get its ? meet.sp .

1. Running Head: Gould Summary/Response Essay
Gould Summary/Response Essay
In the concluding paragraphs of Stephen Jay Gould’s essay
‘Nonmoral Nature,’ double quotes Gould argues that through
natural selection, nature regulates itself. According to him,
ichneumons laying its agr eggs on a host caterpillar should not
be seen as cruelty but as a way of regulating nature. He terms it
inappropriate to question “nature[ ]” as it has to take its course.
In his view the strategy works for ichneumons[ ] and the
ichneumons have outmaneuvered the caterpillar in the
evolutionary game. He views evolution to be changing and that
some day in the future the caterpillar will develop some
adequate defense against ichneumons. The probability of that
happening [ ] though [ ] is very little wc. Gould compares
natural selection to the “mills of God,” which grinds agr slowly
and the products are “aesthetically, morally and intellectually
repulsive to us” these two quoted phrases come from Julian
Huxley—be careful to attribute quotes accurately (Gould).
Natural selection is an important phenomenon of regulating
nature even though it seems cruel towards the weak in the
evolutionary game. Thesis? This statement identifies “natural
selection” but does not present an argument in response to
Gould’s claims in the last two paragraphs of his essay. See my
notes on your first draft.
Natural selection is a law that regulates nature. See my
comments on your first draft. In the passage, the ichneumon
represents the habits of a large number of animals. The group of
wasps has provoked “the problem of evil” among natural
theologians. The wasps live their larva life as parasites, which
then feed on the bodies of the host animals belonging to their
own phylum, athropoda. The adult ichneumon broods their agr
young ones into the appropriate host (Gould). The host is later
inconvenienced when it is almost entirely consumed. Different

2. animals [ ]too [ ] feed on others. The lion feeds on impalas,
humans feed on goats (?)[ ] and so on. That ref has been viewed
as a cruel act. When much thought is given to the ichneumon
case, the caterpillars mod are naturally regulated from
destroying the crops. If the ichneumon does not feed on the
caterpillar, there would be an imbalance. The crops would be
greatly destroyed by the large numbers of caterpillars that feed
on the crops. The other race of animals that are dependent on
the crops will then perish, as the crops to feed on will not be
available.
Humans[ ] too[ ] contribute to the “cruelty” of nature.
Connection to thesis? Just like the chneumon, humans feed on
other vertebrates of the kingdom animalia. Man, who belongs to
the subphylum vertebrata[ ] feeds on cows, goats [among other
animals’ meat belonging to the same subphylum, vertebrates.]
awk phrasing In order to put the meat on the table, a human has
to first hunt the animal. The animal undergoes human’s cruelty
whereby the human slaughters the animal in order to get its ?
meet.sp [In the real sense] awk that ref should not be observed
as cruelty but rather it should be seen as a gift from God. Shift
in focus Some humans observe a strict vegetarian diet as a way
of doing away with natures punct cruelty. Such human’s punct
suffer clinical conditions that are caused by lack of sufficient
nutrients got wc from eating meat. Natural selection therefore
“plain happens” (Gould). The connection between Gould’s
claim that perceived “cruelty” in nature “just plain happens”
and your argument in this paragraph that humans eating animals
is an example of “a gift from God” is not clear.
In evolution, natural selection is the struggle for existence. TS?
All animals benefit from another species in one way or another.
The stronger species generally preys on the weaker one. In the
food chain, the weakest of them all is usually placed at the
bottom of the chain. The animals or species that have less
defense attributes do become extinct over a period of time. In
Gould’s essay the caterpillar is the species that is less defensive
in the “survival for the fittest” expression used by Herbert

3. Spencer. It meant tense shift that the weaker species verb?
extinct over a period of suffering natural cruelty. Natural
selection is therefore not as cruel as it seams. sp It is a way in
which nature reduces aggregate suffering to natural habitats.
This statement contains the argument you are making in this
paragraph.
In conclusion, Gould’s view of natural selection is that, no c
nature should be left to take its course. He does not think it as
wc appropriate, no c for us to rule against nature. He believes
that there is no answer to the ancient dilemma of why cruelty
(according to our terms) exists. Natural selection regulates
nature (Gould). From history, there were gigantic animals such
as mammoths and dinosaurs. The animals became extinct due to
the natural selection process. This natural selection process
regulated nature since the animals fed heavily on plants. If the
animals had continued to survive the other animals would then
[have to perish] tense shift , as they would not be left with any
crops to feed on. Humans are part of the natural selection
process. They[ ] too[ ] have to feed from other species, causing
cruelty, just like the ichneumons to the caterpillar. In nature all
species struggle to survive by benefitting from other weaker
species. The weak species in the struggle is [faced out]? and
becomes extinct after a long period of time.
Essay 2 RUBRIC
1. Be sure to follow the assignment directions. This assignment
asks you to respond, in an argument essay, to a selected
passage. In your introductory paragraph, be sure to identify the
author and the essay title; indicate and summarize the specific
passage you've chosen to discuss. For example: “In the
concluding paragraphs of Stephen Jay Gould’s essay ‘Nonmoral
Nature,’ Gould argues that . . .” OR “In paragraph 30 of ‘Letter
from Birmingham Jail,’ Martin Luther King, Jr. states that . . .”
Be sure that your thesis is the last sentence of your introduction
and that it states your argument about the selected passage.

4. You will then focus on this argument as you analyze several
aspects of the selected passage in the body of your essay.
Remember: Your analysis is the the centerpiece of this essay.
Every reference you make to the original paragraph (King's or
Gould's) should be in support of your opinion, not the other way
around.
This essay lacks a strong thesis. The statement that concludes
your introductory paragraph makes a claim about the way that
natural selection “regulates nature,” but it does not respond
clearly to an argument Gould makes in the final paragraphs of
his essay.
2. Remember everything you learned in ATS and apply it to this
essay! Not only should your thesis be an assertion (a statement
you must prove), but every topic sentence of every body
paragraph should support that assertion. Likewise, every
sentence within a given body paragraph should relate to and
support the claim made in the topic sentence. This overall
structure is absolutely essential in a successful argument essay.
This essay is structured around the idea that natural selection is
an important regulator that applies to both humans and non-
humans, but the overall cohesion of your argument is lacking.
3. Keep your focus only on the passage you've selected. This
assignment is an exercise in what is called "close reading." The
passages chosen for the assignment contain provocative
statements for you to respond to (for ex: "groups tend to be
more immoral than individuals" or "if nature is nonmoral, then
evolution cannot teach any ethical theory at all"). Be sure to
quote such passages in your essay and build each body
paragraph around your analysis of the quote.
Important reminder about using quotes from the text: Yes, use
quotes, but do not rely on long passages of text to fill up your
paragraphs. Use brief quotes and always include a sentence of
your own to introduce the quote and to follow it. In other

5. words, never let a quote stand alone. Always comment on its
significance in your own words.
Be careful to cite page numbers after each quote and to attribute
quotes appropriately (see above).
4. Don't forget basic grammar and style rules. You know the
drill. Indent the first sentence of every paragraph (in these days
of email and social media, we are out of practice, but remember
that tab button? Use it!).
There are quite a few grammatical and typographical errors here
that weaken the overall effectiveness of your argument.
Do not use 2nd person point of view. Do not use contractions.
Works Cited
Gould, Jay, Steven. “Nonmoral Nature.” A World of Ideas. Ed.
Lee A. Jacobus. 8th ed. Boston:
Indent Bedford, 2010. 638-648