Dawkins argues that “groups” cannot be the units that evolve, because animals tend to favor their own kin (who are their genetic relatives) over others in the group (who are not). They assumed that the “unit” that evolves wasn’t the individual animal, but the species as a whole. Historically, biologists assumed that some organisms act selflessly in order to ensure the species as a whole survives. In fact, Dawkins argues that cooperative behaviors always ensure the genes’ survival, and that genes are fundamentally “selfish” and altruism in nature is an illusion. Dawkins argues, however, that when these behaviors are looked at from a genetic perspective, they only appear to be altruistic, and that cooperation only occurs when there is an evolutionary advantage to cooperating. There is also apparent evidence of cooperation in nature, both between species and between genes.
One of Dawkins’ central motivations in The Selfish Gene is “to understand the biology of selfishness and altruism.” Some animals sacrifice themselves so that other animals in their species can survive.
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