<Note>Winsor's Challenge to the "Essentialism Story" in Biology

Abstract

In this note, I summarize Mary P. Winsor's challenge to the received view concerning the conceptual development of evolutionary thought in biology, as established by Ernst Mayr and several biologists and philosophers, and scrutinize its validity. The received view states that one of the contributions of Darwin's Origin of Species is the abandonment of essentialism. Winsor and other critics of the received view insist that the received view is so flawed that it is to be regarded as a "story" (not history). I first describe briefly what is (or is thought of as) essentialism, and how the term was introduced to the biological community. Second, I summarize Winsor's arguments against the received view. Thirdly, I analyze the received view to make clear what is thought of as the crucial difference between pre- and post-Darwinian biology. Finally, I argue that Winsor fails to capture what is thought of as the watershed brought about by the Darwinian theory of evolution. I conclude that, at the present time, we have good reasons to regard the received view as dependable.