Law of Life

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The Law of Life was coined by author Farley Mowat in his book People of the Deer, and popularized by Daniel Quinn to denote a system of laws that all beings are subject to and which serve to foster life. Mowat's work here greatly influenced Quinn.

In The Story of B, Quinn writes, "A biologist would probably say what I'm calling the Law of Life is just a collection of evolutionarily stable strategies— the universal set of such strategies, in fact."

Quinn points out that this is a physical law, like gravity, not a commandment like "thou shalt not kill" nor a legistlative ruling like "pay taxes". As he puts it, the latter two are written where only man can read them (in books), and that they can be changed by a vote, while the Law of Life is written in the fabric of the universe and cannot be broken. Those who don't follow the law simply won't live.

[edit] See also

• Law of Limited Competition