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 .