Biophilia, Selfish Genes, Shared Values
— Kellert, Wilson, The Biophilia Hypothesis, 1993

"Biophilia, Selfish Genes, Shared Values" Pages 381-414 in Stephen R. Kellert and Edward O. Wilson, eds., The Biophilia Hypothesis: A Theoretical and Empirical Inquiry (Washington: Island Press, 1993). Online at: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/39367

Two central features of Edward O. Wilson's work are selfish genes and biophilia. A biophilia ethics is based in a love for all forms of life, so the chief exponent of selfish genes reaches toward a more comprehensive ethics, one even including ants. Thereby comes the puzzle. Can we get biophilia out of selfish genes? The analysis here proposes a theory that both better describes what is going on and better prescribes what ought to be. By a series of ever more extensive hookups we weave the selfish genes into global natural history. Philosophically speaking, this is a study in integration and identity in natural history.