The Selfish Gene
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- Create Date：2021-04-21 11:54:46
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Richard Dawkins
- ISBN：0198788606
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Summary
The million copy international bestseller， critically acclaimed and translated into over 25 languages。
As influential today as when it was first published， The Selfish Gene has become a classic exposition of evolutionary thought。 Professor Dawkins articulates a gene's eye view of evolution - a view giving centre stage to these persistent units of information， and in which organisms can be seen as vehicles for their replication。 This imaginative， powerful， and stylistically brilliant work not only brought the insights of Neo-Darwinism to a wide audience， but galvanized the biology community， generating much debate and stimulating whole new areas of research。 Forty years later， its insights remain as relevant today as on the day it was published。
This 40th anniversary edition includes a new epilogue from the author discussing the continuing relevance of these ideas in evolutionary biology today， as well as the original prefaces and foreword， and extracts from early reviews。
Oxford Landmark Science books are 'must-read' classics of modern science writing which have crystallized big ideas， and shaped the way we think。
As influential today as when it was first published， The Selfish Gene has become a classic exposition of evolutionary thought。 Professor Dawkins articulates a gene's eye view of evolution - a view giving centre stage to these persistent units of information， and in which organisms can be seen as vehicles for their replication。 This imaginative， powerful， and stylistically brilliant work not only brought the insights of Neo-Darwinism to a wide audience， but galvanized the biology community， generating much debate and stimulating whole new areas of research。 Forty years later， its insights remain as relevant today as on the day it was published。
This 40th anniversary edition includes a new epilogue from the author discussing the continuing relevance of these ideas in evolutionary biology today， as well as the original prefaces and foreword， and extracts from early reviews。
Oxford Landmark Science books are 'must-read' classics of modern science writing which have crystallized big ideas， and shaped the way we think。
Reviews
Dimebag The Reader
，
Bret Weinstein， the evolutionary biologist once said that The Selfish Gene is still cutting edge in evolutionary biology。
Ellie
，
I thought I would enjoy this more than I did。 I think not only that some of his other books are more interesting （Greatest Show on Earth is excellent）， but that this book could probably have been condensed into half the size。 Maybe I just prefer a concise， to the point style of scientific writing or have read more attention grabbing genetics/modern science books。
Kauri Kalbre
，
One of the most interesting books I have read so far。 At first， it was quite difficult language-wise and took me a few paragraphs to fully understand what I am reading。 After that， every paragraph was more interesting than the last one and kept me hooked。 Amazing that， it's still relevant 45 years after its release。 I recommend it to anyone who is interested in genetics， evolution and probability。 The whole book is an interesting and fun thought exercise， and it all made sense！ Loved it！ One of the most interesting books I have read so far。 At first， it was quite difficult language-wise and took me a few paragraphs to fully understand what I am reading。 After that， every paragraph was more interesting than the last one and kept me hooked。 Amazing that， it's still relevant 45 years after its release。 I recommend it to anyone who is interested in genetics， evolution and probability。 The whole book is an interesting and fun thought exercise， and it all made sense！ Loved it！ 。。。more
ALMIRA MAE
，
It kept me completely enthralled all the way thru。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Maddie Di Benedetto
，
I enjoyed parts of this book and definitely learned some new things。 It felt like Dawkins tried to fit too much into one book and although his method of simplifying explanations and theories helped to understand what he was trying to say， I felt that this downplayed the complexity of evolution and also his argument。 It is an interesting read though。
Niloy Mitra
，
An iconic book。 The part about prisoners dilemma was very engaging。
Tomas Heard
，
Did you know Richard Dawkins invented the concept of the Meme in 1976？ He meant it as an idea that rides around in human brains， can replicate by spreading between us， and can be beneficial or detrimental to its host。 It can also mutate， and those mutants could be better or worse at spreading， or better or worse at promoting the survival of its host。 It therefore can evolve， and will tend to become better at spreading over time， and usually favour the survival and reproduction of the host， but n Did you know Richard Dawkins invented the concept of the Meme in 1976？ He meant it as an idea that rides around in human brains， can replicate by spreading between us， and can be beneficial or detrimental to its host。 It can also mutate， and those mutants could be better or worse at spreading， or better or worse at promoting the survival of its host。 It therefore can evolve， and will tend to become better at spreading over time， and usually favour the survival and reproduction of the host， but not always - if it can spread across many brains by sacrificing the current host brain， it may evolve to do so。 Observe ideas like technologies in the first category， and religious martyrdom or military self-sacrifice in the second。 "People don't have ideas， ideas have people" - Carl JungThe extraordinary part is that this is only the final chapter and cherry on top of The Selfish Gene， probably the most important scientific book of the 20th century。 In it he provides the definitive update to Darwin， showing that genes are the true replicators， and we are merely a confederation of them。 He shows how our most complex traits and behaviours， from childrearing to warfare to the construction of societies are game-theoretical strategies pursued by our genes to maximize their individual success。 Unifying genetics with evolution in this way is a similar in importance to unifying quantum mechanics with general relativity， which humanity has not yet achieved。 Dawkins is careful to note that our legacy is not our destiny。 We have now achieved the intelligence to cut our own path away from the narrow survival interests of our genes or our memes。 But first， we must understand what we are， how we were built， and the nature of our hidden desires。 This book is a torch in the cavern of self-discovery， and it is now up to us to carry it forth。 。。。more
Laura
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Overall， I’d say 3。5 stars。 He clearly explains complex ideas with interesting （if somewhat repetitive） examples。 Having studied social anthropology， I didn’t really appreciate the not-so-subtle digs at the discipline but at least he acknowledged his error about the “mothers’ brother effect” in the endnotes。 I like the chapter length and found it an easy book to put down and come back to。 It’s often funny and written in a way that someone without a scientific background can follow his ideas。 I t Overall， I’d say 3。5 stars。 He clearly explains complex ideas with interesting （if somewhat repetitive） examples。 Having studied social anthropology， I didn’t really appreciate the not-so-subtle digs at the discipline but at least he acknowledged his error about the “mothers’ brother effect” in the endnotes。 I like the chapter length and found it an easy book to put down and come back to。 It’s often funny and written in a way that someone without a scientific background can follow his ideas。 I think he achieved the goal he set in the introduction: to appeal to the layperson， the student， and the expert。 。。。more
SANSKAR JAIN
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 It is an exciting and influential book on gene centric view of evolution of diverse forms of life forms on earth。 With the prerequisite of maintaining an open mind while you turn its pages， the book will very well provide convincing， mathematically optimal and logical explanations on few very basic questions that we humans began asking & speculating when our genes and culture matured our mind making it capable to question our own existence。 Generally， most of us didn't use our cognitive skills e It is an exciting and influential book on gene centric view of evolution of diverse forms of life forms on earth。 With the prerequisite of maintaining an open mind while you turn its pages， the book will very well provide convincing， mathematically optimal and logical explanations on few very basic questions that we humans began asking & speculating when our genes and culture matured our mind making it capable to question our own existence。 Generally， most of us didn't use our cognitive skills extensively to make a decision when a problem is presented before us。 This is because natural selection didn't favour those who thinks more than what is required。 When encountered a question like "who created us"， our subconscious mind instantly had an answer - a creator of extraordinary power。 Those who questioned this explanation were incompatible with ancient way of life and thus became extinct until recently such objections began to re emerge and eventually answered by Charles Darwin through his theory of natural selection。 Dawkins in his book， provides implications of this theory and if it indeed is successful in explaining all the bizarre life behaviour ever discovered on earth。 He assumed gene to be extremely selfish and has an unitary purpose of its survival。 Gene and all its identical replicas found in millions of living bodies together constitute a gene。 The book presents carefully chosen species and their distinct （sometimes strictly contradictory behaviour） and explains the cause of their existence as a result of gene selfishness。 I generally encounter two kinds of people -ones believing that every human or a living thing is consciously selfish in all its motives and 2 - these individuals couldn't accept selfishness as a basic human trait and insist on proving humanity to be altruistic and its selfishness is a result of presence of evil in their neighborhood。 The book uses mathematical models and concepts of game theory to prove both kinds wrong。 As surprising as it may sound but the ruthless and selfish gene is the reason of our altruistic behaviours - sacrificing one's life， selflessly helping， caring & bearing children etc。 We are genetically programmed to be selfish and many times gene selfishness is converted into individual selfishness as well and we began to experience anger， jealousy， enmity， greed etc。 The book does well in explaining human's handling of various relationships and how his behaviour is influenced by genetic difference between him and the one he is behaving with。 I personally enjoyed reading the prisoner's delimma and its practical applications in real life。 The uncertain iterations of the problem can explain basic humans tendency to co operate than to fight。 You will be stunned to know the multiple instances in history whose outcome can be predicted on the basis of this delimma， how the mutually cooperative nature of different species on earth including humans can be explained by modelling the situation as an instance of the delimma and then， finding out the best mutually beneficially strategy。 The decisions that we make generally didn't end up with us winning - thus we unknowingly play non-zero games where our selfish nature forces us to co operate rather than lose allowing third party to win an unconscious zero game。 Throughout the book， author emphasised on genes dictating our unconscious behaviour。 We are biologically programmed to be selfish。 Our naive subconscious mind （without subjected to cultural alteration） thinks selfishly as a result of how genes have programmed it。 Consciously， we are capable of rebelling against it。 It is always better to know all about the opponent before attacking it。 The book is a perfect material for you to know all about genes and how they manipulate us to take a decision that will maximize its own survival。 Being conscious of it， we can retaliate （if necessary）。 It is a great book for all the curious minds who like the idea of their prejudices and long held believes being challenged and who can afford to replace them with more logically convincing ones。 。。。more
Ariela
，
A tese central não me convenceu， mas acho que vale a leitura mesmo assim。 O mais legal é se assombrar com coisas que qualquer um com formação básica em biologia sabe， mas que Dawkins descreve de um jeito que faz parecer que estamos entrando em contato com a ideia pela primeira vez。 Durante a leitura， me peguei comentando algumas coisas como: você sabe que somos todos máquinas de sobrevivência para apenas 46 cromossomos que definem tudo na gente？ você sabe que a reprodução sexuada é um processo d A tese central não me convenceu， mas acho que vale a leitura mesmo assim。 O mais legal é se assombrar com coisas que qualquer um com formação básica em biologia sabe， mas que Dawkins descreve de um jeito que faz parecer que estamos entrando em contato com a ideia pela primeira vez。 Durante a leitura， me peguei comentando algumas coisas como: você sabe que somos todos máquinas de sobrevivência para apenas 46 cromossomos que definem tudo na gente？ você sabe que a reprodução sexuada é um processo de cópia imperfeita？ você sabe que os genes que estão em nós existem desde tempos imemoriais？ São coisas que a gente sabe， mas esquece e depois deixa de apreciar quão estranha é a realidade。 。。。more
Peggy
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I read this because we had it in the house， as my children had to read it in high school。 I liked it。 I think it is a good summary of how evolution came about。 Glad I read it。
Filip Đokić
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What a read！In my modest book collection this is a must read in category of understanding our being！ The Selfish Gene， guess what？ -I have it， you have it and essentially anything that lives that we know of has it。The beautiful concept of the theory is extended and more precise version of Darwinism。 Every living organism competes for it's gene's replication in a ruthless selfish manner。What about altruism in nature？ - Hah， nah。 Altruism is just another more complex and calculated behaviour of be What a read！In my modest book collection this is a must read in category of understanding our being！ The Selfish Gene， guess what？ -I have it， you have it and essentially anything that lives that we know of has it。The beautiful concept of the theory is extended and more precise version of Darwinism。 Every living organism competes for it's gene's replication in a ruthless selfish manner。What about altruism in nature？ - Hah， nah。 Altruism is just another more complex and calculated behaviour of being selfish。 Genes develope so called survival machines （bodies） through which they impose their "will"， which is？ - more copies of them。It's important to point out that Dawkins acknowledges consciousness in humans and leaves open room for taught of humans engaging in pure altruism， but as we know， this， for now can't be concluded。Extremely simplified and simply written but rather slow read due to the quantity of information you receive from page to page。I would recommend taking notes while reading。And now， the story of the Selfish Gene is not fully understood without Dawkins's masterpiece The Extended Phenotype。 Let's get to it！ 。。。more
Đăng Bảo
，
Một quyển sách được viết khá là đơn điệu。 Giải thích vấn đề tuy là thông qua những ví dụ nhưng mình thấy vấn đề được thể hiện lên không được rõ。 Tuy sách khá dày nhưng nội dung đọng lại sau khi đọc là không bao nhiêu cả。 Cái mình thấy chỉ là Gen cố gắng làm sao để bản thân nó được tồn tại lâu nhất mà thôi （thông qua di truyền， sinh sản）。
Max Orteu
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A brilliant introduction to how evolution shapes every living being。 There is a couple of slightly more challenging chapters that can be a bit dry， but overall it is an amazing read。
Justin Harnish
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I have read a ton of scientific non-fiction but the Selfish Gene ranks up there as one of my favorites。 Dawkins covers the material with an approachable knack for analogy and each instance absolutely allows the reader to follow not only the example at hand， but also the entire thesis。 Dawkins weaves a complex theory to a simplicity that shows his mastery of the material and I for one was left with as deep an appreciation for his skill as a writer as I am of his skill as a theorist and one of the I have read a ton of scientific non-fiction but the Selfish Gene ranks up there as one of my favorites。 Dawkins covers the material with an approachable knack for analogy and each instance absolutely allows the reader to follow not only the example at hand， but also the entire thesis。 Dawkins weaves a complex theory to a simplicity that shows his mastery of the material and I for one was left with as deep an appreciation for his skill as a writer as I am of his skill as a theorist and one of the most important thinkers OF ALL TIME。 There may not be a more important book on evolution and genetics than "The Selfish Gene" so it is a must read for any examined life， but its clarity and pith will change your worldview and help recognize the grandeur not only of life on this planet， but the universal nature of life's need for a selfish replicator， no matter what form it takes in mechanics， respiration， or intelligence。 。。。more
Larissa Potapova
，
Wow ！ Dawkins puts such a unique and original slant on Darwinian evolution so it's not hard to see why this book is a "classic"。 The new fundamental ideas in this book are very gracefully built upon evolutionary theory， and Dawkins uses a plethora of evidence to support his reasoning。 The core idea of the book is that the gene （rather than the group or the individual） plays the single， most central role in natural selection。 Despite this book being the 40th anniversary edition （shown by the dens Wow ！ Dawkins puts such a unique and original slant on Darwinian evolution so it's not hard to see why this book is a "classic"。 The new fundamental ideas in this book are very gracefully built upon evolutionary theory， and Dawkins uses a plethora of evidence to support his reasoning。 The core idea of the book is that the gene （rather than the group or the individual） plays the single， most central role in natural selection。 Despite this book being the 40th anniversary edition （shown by the dense endnotes section at the back haha）， it has definitely stood the test of time。 It's safe to say that I would recommend this book to anyone interested in biology， population dynamics， behaviour or evolution。 。。。more
Roblux Craft
，
。 This book was amazing！ Really love the author。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Whitney
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A dense read from Dawkins， yet he uses powerful imagery in his examples that allow one to follow along vividly in the imagination。 Some chapters are a bit dry， others more intriguing with his philosophies on the biological world。
Premkumar Bhaskal
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Clearly explained all the difficult concepts by giving right examples。 Wish this book was given as extra reading in high school
Jannick
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I really enjoyed the book！ Dawkin‘s way of thinking about evolution changed my perspective and lead to many interesting thoughts。 Would recommend
Elihu Whitney
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It does a good job of examining evolution from a game-theory perspective。 I listened to the audio book。 I gave it a 4 because it was good but didn't blow me away。 It does a good job of examining evolution from a game-theory perspective。 I listened to the audio book。 I gave it a 4 because it was good but didn't blow me away。 。。。more
Trailerror2017
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The author makes a very interesting case for his selfish gene theory and he is quite successful in explaining a lot of things about animals which we take for granted。
Adam Voight
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Probably the best book of evolutionary biology since Darwin himself。 Read this book beofre you bother with anything else in the past two centuries。
Akib Javed
，
All the books I've read on this subject so far ; this one probably is the best。。。very informative simple writing came to know a lot of things that were not mentioned （or ignored） in the school books。。。 All the books I've read on this subject so far ; this one probably is the best。。。very informative simple writing came to know a lot of things that were not mentioned （or ignored） in the school books。。。 。。。more
Martin Hjalmarsson
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S。 90 Evolutionärt stabil strategi （ESS） - strategi som om majoritet av population anpassar sig till， ej kan förbättras av alternativ strategi。 Om 2 arter finns， där 1 har ESS och andra ej kommer trycket på evolvera vara högre för arten utan ESS。S。 120 Genetiskt är du lika lik din kusin som ditt barnbarnsbarn （1/8）。 Är 1/128 genetiskt lik sin tredje kusin， är då nere på en så liten andel att en gen hos denna kusin med lika stor sannolikhet delas med dig som med vilken genomsnittlig individ som h S。 90 Evolutionärt stabil strategi （ESS） - strategi som om majoritet av population anpassar sig till， ej kan förbättras av alternativ strategi。 Om 2 arter finns， där 1 har ESS och andra ej kommer trycket på evolvera vara högre för arten utan ESS。S。 120 Genetiskt är du lika lik din kusin som ditt barnbarnsbarn （1/8）。 Är 1/128 genetiskt lik sin tredje kusin， är då nere på en så liten andel att en gen hos denna kusin med lika stor sannolikhet delas med dig som med vilken genomsnittlig individ som helst i populationen。 S。 181 Måste lära barn altruism， då vi ej kan ta för givet att altruism är del av vår biologiska natur。S。 245 Språk evolverar via icke-genetiska mekanismer och med hastighet som vida överstiger den för genetisk evolutionen （t。ex。 Geoffrey Chaucer skulle ha svårt att konversera med en nutida engelsman， trots deras association via obruten kedja av 20 generationer av engelsmän）。Kap。 11 Mem = en ur kulturarvet utbruten enhet， hypotetiskt analog med 1 specifik gen， och lydande under samma naturliga urval beroende av sina fördelar inom den egna idéfenotypen för sin överlevnad/utbredning i kulturmiljön。S。 294 Hur britter och tyskar， under WW1， undvek att skjuta först， för individen vill helst överleva och helst inte döda， därmed blev det relativt fredligt emellanåt。 Inkluderar exempel på en tysk som ropade "förlåt det var inte vi som sköt， det var någon från artilleriet， hoppas ingen blev skadad"。 Live and let live。 。。。more
Sydney Kasner
，
No rating — the book is great but too rudimentary for me。 If you’ve studied biology at a college level， you’ll likely be in the same boat。 If not， I’m sure this would be a great read！
April Curnutt
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Very good and thought provoking take on Darwinian Theory， however can be difficult to follow at times since there is just SO MUCH information in this book（I spaced out several times and had to reread many pages）。 I will admit I skipped the 65 pages of endnotes in the back and will save it for a second reading of the book， likely a few years down the line to rethink and reprocess the contents of this text。 10/10 would recommend， just be prepared to focus！！
EmmaPorzee
，
This is awesome！ I was able to talk about the book after I read it。 You did well！ 。。。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Gaganpreet Singh
，
If you were a fan of Darwinian theory and group selection in species' evolution， this book is quite a flip of perspective。 The arguments put forward by Richard （most of them） seem plausible and convincing but at moments I felt a confirmation bias in play， fitting everything in the same view of the lens， "the selfishness of the genes"。 A 45year old book exposed to all critics by experts of the domain， I can take a few arguments by word though。Nevertheless， the book instills a whole new way of thi If you were a fan of Darwinian theory and group selection in species' evolution， this book is quite a flip of perspective。 The arguments put forward by Richard （most of them） seem plausible and convincing but at moments I felt a confirmation bias in play， fitting everything in the same view of the lens， "the selfishness of the genes"。 A 45year old book exposed to all critics by experts of the domain， I can take a few arguments by word though。Nevertheless， the book instills a whole new way of thinking and recommended only if you are receptive to a "just science" view of the world， as this book comes with a pinch of salt， are we all programmed by our genes to be selfish？ We see altruism within and across species， but Dawkins has compelling research to support his arguments。 Leaving rest for you to read and find out。 。。。more
Brayan
，
Must！
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Selfish Gene
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Selfish Gene&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Selfish Gene&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0