Human beings have been studied for a long period of time in order to understand our process of doing things and what thoughts go into that process. Human nature is variable and unpredictable, it has been studied so extensively in recent centuries that one thing is certain; its constituent elements are essentially the same for every human being. One of the foundations of human nature is the selfish gene, and The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins “shows how both individual selfishness and individual altruism are explained by the fundamental law I call genetic selfishness” (Dawkins 6). Anyone who wants to understand Dawkins' theory of the selfish gene needs to be a little accustomed to Charles Darwin and his ideas on evolution, which shouldn't be difficult because we've been taught it since middle school. Darwin's theory of evolution forms the building block of Dawkins' idea of ​​the selfish gene. It is a safe assumption to say that Darwin would have understood Dawkins' theory and agreed with it on the basis that it is essentially Darwin's theory. Dawkins intended the book to be read by three groups of people who described them as "the layman, the expert, and the student" (Dawkins xxi). He wanted to entice them to understand that although there are two ways of looking at natural selection, the gene and the individual, he would focus on social behavior. To do this he divided the book into eight main parts which consist of: concepts of altruistic and selfish behavior, genetic definition of self-interest, deception, sex ratio theory, evolution of aggressive behavior, kinship theory, reciprocal altruism, and natural selection of sexual differences. With the use of analogies and...... middle of paper ...... exception to this; he was able to write a science book from which I could learn everything he was trying to teach. The Selfish Gene was such an intellectual and bizarre book that it contained everything it needed to produce the result of readers who were absorbing all the information they had learned and who were able to make sense of what was being said. The boundaries established by our society have hindered human nature which many believe to be animalistic and dark, implying that a powerful motivating factor of human nature is to seek gratification and avoid misery. Therefore, without all the boundaries and rules that society has imposed on us, we would pursue what our hearts desire and ignore others and the repercussions our actions have on other individuals. Works Cited Dawkins, Richard. The selfish gene. New York, NY: Oxford UP, 1978. Print.