This week we have learned that evolution is the process of change which can result in an adaptation or an adaptive trait that provides a functional advantage to a group of organisms.
Adaptive traits can occur through both divergent evolution and convergent evolution. Provide a brief account of these two forms of evolution giving examples of animals with similar traits that have developed through both of these natural processes. Discuss which ( if either) has the greatest impact on speciation.
Sample solution
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Sample Answer
Sample Answer
Evolution: Divergent vs. Convergent Evolution
Evolution, the process of change over time, can lead to the development of adaptive traits that provide functional advantages to organisms. This adaptation can occur through divergent evolution and convergent evolution, two distinct mechanisms that shape the diversity of life on Earth.
Divergent Evolution
Divergent evolution occurs when two or more related species become more dissimilar over time. It often happens when a population is geographically isolated from others of its kind, leading to different environmental pressures and ultimately resulting in distinct evolutionary paths.
One classic example of divergent evolution is the case of Darwin’s finches in the Galapagos Islands. These finches evolved from a common ancestor but developed different beak shapes and sizes to exploit different food sources on the various islands. This divergence in beak morphology allowed the finches to occupy different ecological niches and reduce competition among them.
Convergent Evolution
Convergent evolution, on the other hand, describes the process by which unrelated species evolve similar traits due to similar environmental pressures. This phenomenon results in analogous structures that serve the same function but have different evolutionary origins.
An excellent example of convergent evolution is the streamlined body shape of sharks and dolphins. Despite sharks being fish and dolphins being mammals, both have evolved a similar body plan to enhance their swimming abilities in the water. This convergence in body shape illustrates how different species can adapt to similar environmental challenges.
Impact on Speciation
In terms of speciation, both divergent and convergent evolution play crucial roles in driving the diversity of life on Earth. Divergent evolution leads to the formation of new species by creating reproductive barriers between populations, ultimately resulting in genetic divergence. Convergent evolution, while not directly leading to speciation, showcases how different species can adapt to similar environments, highlighting the incredible diversity and adaptability of life forms.
