‘It has, I believe, been often remarked, that a hen is only an egg’s way of making another egg.’
Life and Habit is a provocative rethinking of Darwinian theory by connecting instinct, memory, and evolution. With wit and intellectual daring, Butler proposes that heredity is a form of accumulated knowledge, resulting not only from a blind struggle for survival but also from a purposeful process shaped by memory. Bridging science and philosophy, Butler challenges existing paradigms of evolution and provides readers with new perspectives on the relationships among memory, habit, and heredity.
Samuel Butler was an English writer, critic, and essayist. He is best known for his satirical novel Erewhon and his semi-autobiographical novel The Way of All Flesh, which is considered to be a classic.