The Selfish Gene The Selfish Gene The Selfish Gene is a 1976 book on evolution by Richard Dawkins, in which the author builds upon the principal theory of George C. Williams's "Adaptation and Natural Selection" (1966). Dawkins uses the term "selfish gene" as a way of expressing the gene-centred view of evolution as opposed to the views focused on the organism and the group, popularising ideas developed during the 1960s by W. D. Hamilton and others. From the gene-centred view, it follows that the more two individuals are genetically related, the more sense (at the level of the genes) it makes for them
The Selfish Gene the benefit of the behaver, but whether it is to the benefit of the gene "G" ...With altruism this will happen only if the affected individual is a relative of the altruist, therefore having an increased chance of carrying the gene. An extended discussion of Dawkins' views and his book "The Selfish Gene" is provided by Wilkins and Hull. Dawkins begins by discussing the altruism that people display, indicating that he will argue it is explained by gene selfishness, and attacking group selection as an explanation. He considers the origin of life with the arrival of molecules able to replicate