Evolution, it is written in books, it is taught in schools. The simple concept: gradual change in organisms over large time spans, usually to adapt to changes. But what is now common knowledge was once a controversial theory thought up by one man: Charles Darwin. A revolutionary, Darwin jumpstarted multiple areas in biological science and paved the way for a new way of thinking. He was, like many revolutionaries before him, almost if not completely alone in his thinking. Creationism was the most widely believed explanation for all the variety and life in the world. The idea that would make him a legend came to him sometime during his multi year journey on board the Beagle. As a result of his experiences onboard the Beagle, Darwin came up with one of the most revolutionary theories ever, the theory to explain how life changes and dramatically varies; the theory of evolution.

            At the time of Darwin, the main explanation for all the weird animals in the world and how they came to be was creationism. Creationism states that God created all the animals, all the plants, all the universe, and then made people separately. This was the way that everyone thought and the church liked it that way. When Charles Darwin came up with the evolutionary idea, the church was not happy and the people were skeptical. At first, it is easy to accept that all animals stay the same and no change can occur. But it is also easy to understand that unless a species can adapt to certain conditions, the species may suffer massive losses or die out all together. But people were still very slow to change their views of the formation of life. Still others did not even want to attempt to look at life from a different angle. The church was particularly unhappy about it. The members of the church tried to first have The Origin of Species and later books by Darwin removed from the shelves due to the supposed threat that Darwin’s views may have. The church was afraid that the people who read the books that Darwin made would become less faithful towards the church and the religion. They may have even been afraid that people would prosecute the church if they believed the church had lied to them on the creation of life. Though the church failed to remove the books Darwin had written from the shelves, the downfall of the church did not happen. Darwin believed in God, in fact, he never made any attempt to remove people’s outlook of religion or change their beliefs. He wanted to teach people what he had learned so they may better understand the world around them, not to brainwash them into destroying the church. This complete indifference to the people’s religious beliefs is what made Darwin such a great person. His purpose was to show people his theory and to allow them to take out of it what they wanted; never did he try to remove anyone’s point of view on a subject he covered in his numerous writings.

            The most prominent and well known part of Darwin’s life was his trip on the Beagle. It was on this journey that he saw the wonders of the world and came up with his theory. When he went on the ship for the first time, he was expecting to go on and educational journey around the world, this was an understatement. He saw some of the most amazing life forms on the planet on his journey. He collected thousands of specimens. He collected everything from plant seeds and pelts to fossils and insects. E saw species that no one had ever seen before and some (like the platypus) that people could not believe even existed. Of all the places that Darwin visited during his journey, perhaps the most important stop was to the Galapagos Islands, it was here that he found his best proof for his theory. In fact, it was here that he first got the idea of the gradual change that we know of as evolution. The Galapagos Islands are unique because species may differ greatly between islands, showing Darwin just how life can evolve and adapt to changes in their surroundings. He also found animals on the islands that could not have gotten there by walking, like the Galapagos tortoise or the iguanas. This also showed that the animals must have moved onto the island over millions of years ago as the islands moved away from the mainland. This shows an enormous time span. Life that has been in seclusion for so long can be used as perfect evidence for Darwin to use in his reports. The life in the Galapagos also helped convince people that Darwin had a real point to make. Being able to provide solid evidence, Charles Darwin started to become a revered person in the scientific community.

During the journey on the Beagle, Charles Darwin tried many times to find an explanation that accurately described all the various adaptations and diverse wildlife that he encountered on his journey. But he was almost always busy doing one study or another, so he had very little time to elaborate on his thoughts while in the field. When he got back home to England he finally had time to put together all the notes and observations that he had discovered over the course of his journey. Now that he had much more time on his hands Darwin now had time to think. The result of his thoughts is the theory of evolution: the theory that organisms change over time through survival of the fittest, meaning that the organisms with the best adaptations have the ability to pass on their genes, getting offspring that share their traits. This theory, when published in the book, The Origin of Species (full name: The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life) was a revolutionary new way of thinking. The people who read this story were amazed by how logical the theory was and how it really all did make sense. They book was an instant hit. The book was successful enough that it pretty much put Charles Darwin on the map and a revolutionary of thinking. The book also helped spur on Darwin’s later works. Thanks to The Origin of Species, Darwin’s later book, The Descent of Man, sold out even faster than The Origin of Species did in the first month. This proved that members of the scientific community around the world had become hooked to the works of Darwin, and had begun to appreciate Darwin for the amazing person that he was.