Survival Of The Fittest

887 Words4 Pages
In the essay, “Thinking About Earthworms”, David Quammen evaluates a study conducted on earthworms. His evaluation correlates with issues of individualism faced by today’s society. Charles Darwin originally conducted the earthworm study in the late 19th century. Quammen points out the idea that humans are becoming too busy thinking about the same things day in and day out. Thus, causing us to lose focus on the smaller items in life that can ultimately make the biggest differences. Darwin made an important observation, noting that earthworms are constantly turning over the soil beneath our feet. Based on this we, as humans, are provided with new, hardy soil for growth on the surface. Yet, we are usually in such a frantic state we pay no mind to this. With this in mind, was Darwin right when he stated that earthworms have potentially played a more vital role in history than any one man has? I cannot help but agree with Mr. Quammen on the points he has confronted in this essay. I sincerely believe that people are entirely too focused on the completing the same tasks everyday. We get so stressed and caught up in our occupations or the media out of the fear of missing the next “big” thing. In doing so, time passes us by and before we recognize it, it may be too late to actually do the things we always wanted to do. It’s good that this kind of publication makes it out amongst the masses for people to reflect upon and react to. As time goes on, more and more people will want to slow down and take time to enjoy themselves. However, with the threat of an economy heading into a downward spiral and current political issues, people fear for their own security. We react to this by not slowing down, but speeding up in an effort to feel that sense of accomplishment, only to lose track of time and well-being. We all have high demands to meet in today’s world. There is more
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