A Teoria da Evolução segundo Darwin foi tornada pública em 1859 na sua obra A origem das Espécies (no original: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or The Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life).
Desde essa data, e até hoje, é uma ideia que gera controvérsia, em particular porque, na sequência d' A Origem das Espécies, Darwin publicou The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, onde defende que o Homem partilha um antepassado próximo com os primatas não humanos. Esta última ideia é muitas vezes re-interpretada como o Homem descende dos macacos, o que claramente não é coerente com a Teoria da Evolução por Selecção Natural, enunciada por Darwin.
Muitas críticas foram feitas a Darwin ainda em vida, e desde então têm surgido manifestações de apoio e de desacordo relativamente a estas ideias, sob várias formas. Por curiosidade, reproduz-se aqui uma música de Dave Bartholomew, nascido em 1920 e representante vivo da música de New Orleans, que imaginou uma conversa entre macacos sobre a ascendência do Homem:
Bunny Matthews resume assim a música The Monkey Speaks his Mind: “The basic premise of ‘The Monkey’ is that Darwin’s Theory of Natural Selection is faulty because no self-respecting monkey could possibly evolve into a creature as cruel, heartless, adulterous, murderous, and felonious as a human being. To the accompaniment of a distorted electric guitar, Bartholomew spits out his lyrics in disgust.”
And three monkeys sat in a coconut tree
Discussing things as they are said to be
Said one to other now listen, you two
There’s a certain rumour that just can’t be true
That man descended from our noble race
Why, the very idea is a big disgrace, yeah
Discussing things as they are said to be
Said one to other now listen, you two
There’s a certain rumour that just can’t be true
That man descended from our noble race
Why, the very idea is a big disgrace, yeah
No monkey ever deserted his wife
Starved her baby and ruined her life
Yea, the monkey speaks his mind
And you’ve never known a mother monk
To leave her babies with others to bunk
And passed them on from one to another
‘Til they scarcely knew which was their mother
To leave her babies with others to bunk
And passed them on from one to another
‘Til they scarcely knew which was their mother
Yeah, the monkey speak his mind
And another thing you will never see
A monkey build a fence around a coconut tree
And let all the coconuts go to waste
Forbidding other monkeys to come and taste
Why, if I put a fence around this tree
Starvation would force you to steal from me
A monkey build a fence around a coconut tree
And let all the coconuts go to waste
Forbidding other monkeys to come and taste
Why, if I put a fence around this tree
Starvation would force you to steal from me
Yeah, the monkey speaks his mind
Here’s another thing a monkey won’t do
Go out on a night and get all in a stew
Or use a gun or a club or a knife
And take another monkey’s life
Yes, man descended, the worthless bum
But, brothers, from us he did not come
Go out on a night and get all in a stew
Or use a gun or a club or a knife
And take another monkey’s life
Yes, man descended, the worthless bum
But, brothers, from us he did not come
Yeah, the monkey speaks his mind
Yeah, now the monkey speaks his mind.
Para breve, fica prometido um post com mais manifestações relativas à Teoria da Evolução segundo Darwin, nomeadamente um episódio histórico decisivo, nos EUA, para o ensino da Evolução nas escolas públicas: O Julgamento de Scopes, em 1925.
