Lamarckism

E7124

Lamarckism is an early evolutionary theory proposing that organisms can pass on traits acquired during their lifetime to their offspring, emphasizing use and disuse of organs as drivers of change.

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Observed surface forms (3)


Statements (42)

Predicate Object
instanceOf biological theory
evolutionary theory
appliesTo both plants and animals in Lamarck’s writings
associatedWith transformist views of species
assumes continuous gradual transformation of species
direct environmental effects on heredity
goal-directed or progressive evolution
contrastsWith Darwinism
surface form: Darwinian natural selection
coreConcept acquired modifications are heritable
disuse of an organ leads to its reduction or loss
use of an organ strengthens and develops it
criticizedBy modern evolutionary synthesis
criticizedFor lack of empirical support in Mendelian genetics
denies strict fixity of species
differsFrom natural selection by emphasizing directed change rather than selection among variants
emphasizes adaptive changes driven by environmental influence
use and disuse of organs
field evolutionary biology
history of science
hasComponent Lamarckism self-linksurface differs
surface form: law of inheritance of acquired characteristics

Lamarckism self-linksurface differs
surface form: law of use and disuse
hasKeyProponent Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
hasLegacy as a classic example of a superseded scientific theory
historicallyReevaluatedIn context of epigenetics
historicalPeriod early 19th century
influenced early evolutionary thought
pre-Darwinian theories of species change
some early social and cultural evolutionary theories
inspiredDebateIn 19th-century biology
isConsidered a precursor to modern evolutionary theory
largely discredited in modern genetics
misinterpretedAs claiming that effort alone can change heredity
namedAfter Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
oftenContrastedWith modern evolutionary synthesis
surface form: Neo-Darwinism
originatedIn France
precedes Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection
proposes inheritance of acquired characteristics
that traits acquired during an organism’s lifetime can be transmitted to offspring
relatedConcept inheritance of acquired characters
soft inheritance
statusInModernBiology of mainly historical interest
teaches that organismal needs drive evolutionary change

Referenced by (4)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

this entity surface form: Pangenesis hypothesis
Darwinism contrastsWith Lamarckism
Lamarckism hasComponent Lamarckism self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: law of use and disuse
Lamarckism hasComponent Lamarckism self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: law of inheritance of acquired characteristics