The intellectual impact of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection is almost impossible to overstate, having far-reaching implications for fields as diverse as biology, philosophy, psychology, politics, economics and theology. This working group seeks to examine the reception, application and perceived implications of evolutionary theory in Japan and other East Asian countries. Central to this exploration is an acknowledgment that advocates of evolution emphasized different facets of the theory and their interplay with religion and politics.

This group seeks to bring together an interdisciplinary group of historians, philosophers, sociologists and biologists to examine these issues. We seek to examine how evolutionary biology, and views of nature and the environment more broadly, intersected with religion and society in modern Japan and East Asia. We will explore how evolutionary ideas and beliefs about the natural world intersected philosophy, politics and theology in non-Western and non-Christian contexts historically, and how they continue to manifest today. We hope that these virtual meetings provide the seeds to apply for funding to host an in-person conference, with the long-term goal of producing an edited volume on the topic.  

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Participants at Consortium activities will treat each other with respect and consideration to create a collegial, inclusive, and professional environment that is free from any form of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.

Participants will avoid any inappropriate actions or statements based on individual characteristics such as age, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, nationality, political affiliation, ability status, educational background, or any other characteristic protected by law. Disruptive or harassing behavior of any kind will not be tolerated. Harassment includes but is not limited to inappropriate or intimidating behavior and language, unwelcome jokes or comments, unwanted touching or attention, offensive images, photography without permission, and stalking.

Participants may send reports or concerns about violations of this policy to conduct@chstm.org.

Upcoming Meetings

Monday, May 19, 2025, 8:00 - 9:30 pm EDT

General discussion about the future of the Working Group.

Past Meetings

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Jung Lee on 'Questioning Plant Phylogenetic Tree: Dynamic Indra's Nets from Japanese Colonial Fields'

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Longkai Zang on 'Genjin and Enjin in Japan: Culture-laden Terms in Hominin Evolution, 1890-1947'

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Akihisa Setoguchi (Kyoto) on 'Celebrating Darwin in Japan: The “Success” and “Failure” of the Reception of Evolutionary Theory'
 
 
 

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Bernard Lightman  (York) and Ruselle Meade (Cardiff) on 'The American biologist Edward Morse and his introduction of evolution into Japan'. 

Please note that this talk will be at a different time than usual: 9.30am Eastern on Monday January 20. 

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Topic: Jinshu Kairyо̄: The 'Race Improvement' Debate in Japan, 1870-1890
Presenter: Subo Wijeyeratne
Reading: Wijeyeratne, S., 2020. A Race to War: Japanese Public Intellectuals and Racial Explanations of the Russo-Japanese War. Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, 18. 
 
 

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Topic: Evolution, Strategy, and Nichiren Buddhism in Modern Japan.
Presenter: Clinton Godart

  • This Tuesday, I will talk about the Nichiren Buddhists, especially Ishiwara Kanji. This builds further on a section of my book in Chapter 4, which I am attaching here. If people still have a chance to read a bit, please take a look at pp. 119-122, 133-147 (Ishiwara appears on pp. 145-147). Apologies for the late posting. Looking forward to discussing this with you all!

 

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Topic: The Jōdo Shinshū Embrace of Science in Late Meiji and Taishō Japan: Science, Secularism, and Buddhism in the Thought of Ishikawa Seishō and Fujikawa Yū
Presenters: Tomoko Yoshida and Stephen Weldon
If you are able, please read the attached article that we will be discussing during this session.

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Meet and greet
This will be an informal meeting. The conveners will explain how this group came together and what their goals are. This will also be a time for the participants to introduce themselves and explain what they would like to get out of these meetings.

Group Conveners

Arvid Ågren

Arvid Ågren is Research Associate at the Lerner Research Institute at the Cleveland Clinic and Affiliated Researcher at the Evolutionary Biology Centre at Uppsala University. His work focuses on the evolution of within-organism conflicts, including selfish genetic elements and cancers. He also works on foundations of selfish gene theory and is the author of The Gene’s-Eye View of Evolution (OUP 2021; paperback 2023). Together with Manus M. Patten, he is the editor of The Paradox of the Organism: Adaptation and Internal Conflict (under contract at Harvard University Press). He is an Associated Editor of Proceedings of the Royal Society B and BioScience.

 

Stephen Weldon

Stephen Weldon is professor and chair of the University of Oklahoma’s Department of History of Science, Technology, and Medicine. He works on the nature of science in modern culture. His recent book The Scientific Spirit of American Humanism (2020) explores the intellectual and cultural shifts in 20th-century America related to science and religion. He is currently interested in the development of evolutionary ideas and theories of nature in modern Japan.He is also bibliographer for the History of Science Society and in that capacity runs the online discovery tool IsisCB Explore, which you can learn more about here. He works on data-focused projects that push the boundaries of how we think about and do history in the digital age.

 

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