Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution i.e. “survival of the fittest” and the “process of natural selection“, was written in 1859 and was a theory based on the behaviour of animals. This theory was adapted by Herbert Spencer and resulted in the ideology that is known today as Social Darwinism. The latter is based on Darwin’s theory but instead of being based on animal behaviour it is applied to humans. It implied that certain races were superior to others because of their technological advancements. This lead people to believe that certain races, such as white/European people, were the “fittest” of all the races. This assumption was based on the fact that “more civilized” meant more technologically advanced. Social Darwinism offered an explanation for the unequal technological development across the world. This gave rise to belief that there was a “hierarchy” of races and that the Europeans were at the top of the hierarchy. Imperialists used genetics as a justified explanation to why white people were more superior to other races. Darwin believed that animal species was adapting and changing to environments in the process of evolution. Never did Darwin suggest that this was meant to apply to humans and their societies, cultures and races. However although the theory adapted by Herbert Spencer, and originally created by Darwin, contributed towards imperialism and colonisation it was not the sole cause of it. Colonisation and European imperialism was inevitable due to the
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Show MoreIn 1898 Spain and the United States got into a war. The war would essentially end Spain’s empire and propel the United States onto the world stage. The United States got into a war with Spain because the United States, driven by imperialism and social darwinism, desired to have foreign territories. Imperialism is the policy of extending a nation’s authority by territorial acquisition and/or by the establishment of economic and political control over other nations. The United States wanted to spread democracy and American ideals, that mentality is imperialism and led to the US challenging Spain for colonies which led to war.
Imperialism was an age where countries expanded into new continents and territories for military, economic and religious purposes. The idea of Social Darwinism spread which was originally introduced by Charles Darwin. However, Europeans interpreted his theory of natural selection as an idea that they had to civilize the uncivilized, which turned out to be Africa and Asia. They formed three types of governing bodies in different areas, colonies, protectorates, and spheres of influence, each doing something slightly different but all with the same idea, civilize the uncivilized. In Africa, it was viewed that the natives were uncivilized people; how they ate and spoke were signs to the Europeans that the African people were uneducated.
Origins of Race DBQ Race was an idea founded in the mid-17th Century in Europe that expanded across the globe and brought the idea of enslavement of other people who were seen as “inferior” from different countries like Africa and sold for labor. This brought up justification and reasons for race which continued for many years. Race was considered a group and category that was used to “organize” people and people had many reasons for justifying it. The origins of race being justified and defended by others depended on economic reasons, which is on the slave trade and others becoming wealthy from it, which led to social reasons depending on your status and where you came from during this time period for example if you were a
In addition, the rise of Social Darwinism also greatly impacted Europeans attitude. Darwin’s “Origin of Species” is the idea of the race who continuously dominates over others in competition is the race that shall survive on top, natural selection. This ideology was helped by artistic movements such as those seen in Gauguin's work in which he depicts Polynesian women as naked, that feel nothing as a European man gazes at them (Doc 5). Europeans believed that non-Europeans were uncivilized and vulnerable due to their own lack of preservation. Nationalistic attitudes would grip every European nation.
The theory is that the race that continuously conquers others in competition is the one that will end up on top. This ideology was assisted by artistic movements such as Gaugin’s work in which he depicts Polynesian women naked, that feel nothing as an odd looking European man stares at them (Doc 5). This pointed out the European belief that non-Europeans were uncivilized due to their own lack of preservation and that because of this they were also vulnerable. As nationalism took over European nations, these opinions gained even more popularity and prominence. This tension can be seen in Dr. Schallmayer’s essay in which he explains Social Darwinism and brings about racism consisted within it.
Furthermore a study by the Genetic Society of America, weakens the myth that race is caused by genetic differences by stating that there is a “larger Genetic Differences Within Africans Than Between Africans and Eurasians” meaning “blacks” are more genetically similar to “whites”
In addition, race has also been used by scientists to classify humans and use science to prove presumed biological differences: “Linking race to biology led to a ‘race science’ that
Between the 1870s and 1900, Europe faced many social problems within their countries such as unemployment, poverty, homelessness, social displacement from rural areas, etc. Some of these countries included France, Britain, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Most of these problems progressively arose throughout a long period of instability within these countries. Other big factors were The French Revolution, Napoleonic wars and a widespread change in beliefs. Due to these circumstances, many European countries began to venture elsewhere to expand their real estate, asserting themselves more power.
George Best describes in his document how people often misunderstand what race is, thinking it to be the fault of the sun, but he describes in his novel that the dark skin of those who live to the south of him was actually a punishment direct from god for being cruel during the biblical flood, (Doc. 2) [B]. While this explanation relies heavily on simple stories, the attempt to describe why some are different through religion is a way to have people widely conform to modern conceptions of race; people always look to god [C]. In another document, David Hume describes that he believes those with white skin are inherently better than those with darker skin, stating questionable and untrue facts about there never being a major African civilization, see Ghana or Mali.
The impacts of Social Darwinism are big and mostly bad when it comes to the rest of the world we live in. I think Social Darwinism has impacted the way the U.S. is today and I don’t believe that is a wonderful thing because I think the United States and the people who live in them sometimes still get caught up in believing they are better and smarter than the rest of our world. I think that is a reflection of how Social Darwinism affected us in the
In the article, “What We Mean When We Say ‘Race Is a Social Construct’,” Ta-Nehisi Coates asserts that the idea of race is that “puts hundreds pf millions under domination” (Coates, p. 3). The definition of race is “the classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, ancestry, genetics or social relations, or the relations between them.” Liberals often say “truly stupid things like race has to biological element” (Coates, p. 6). William Z. Ripley wrote a story which desired to “delineate racial difference through head type” (Coates, p. 4). Coates states that “race does not need biology.
Starting in the late 19th century, social Darwinism became a popular view among Americans. It was a theory advocated by Herbert Spencer, who used the ideas from Charles Darwin, and said that humans behave under laws of natural selection. The theory said that there is a struggle for existence among people, and that only the most fit will survive in a society. This includes people with high social positions and wealth. For the poor with little wealth and social status, they will most likely struggle to exist and die off.
The treatises of imperialism, like other social subjects, have caused many controversies among those who are deeply interested despite their diverse national backgrounds. Nonetheless, no matter how heated debates the subject has raised, it is essential to fully deal with it based on historical sources. This paper will decode imperialism from the following primary sources to help people better understand the impacts of imperialism on the world’s politics, economies and cultures: John A. Hobson’s Imperialism: A Study, Vladimir Illyich Lenin’s Imperialism, The Highest Stage of Capitalism, Jules Ferry’s On French Colonial Expansion, Rudyard Kipling’s The White Man’s Burden, American Anti-Imperialism League’s Platform of the American Anti¬-Imperialist
Charles Darwin was a British naturalist who travelled for five years on a British ship known as zethe HMS Beagle. He collected numerous plant and animal species from many different environments. Darwin together with British naturalist Wallace arrived at the theory of natural selection independently, but Darwin went on to present a thorough and completely documented statement of the theory in his book : On the Origin of species published in 1859.In their theory of natural selection they emphasized the enormous variation that exists in all plant and animal species .Darwin ’s theory of natural selection states that certain individuals in a species may be born with particular traits or characteristics that make them better able to survive.
Introduction The theory of evolution has been discussed, evaluated, and researched many times since the theory was first brought to light. Darwin’s theory of evolution is said to be divided into two parts, common decent and natural selection (Bouzat, 2014). Many research papers agreeing with Darwin’s theory comment on the diversity of a species and how they have descended from one common ancestor. Natural selection is a process in which species that are better adapted to the environment tend to survive and reproduce (Dictonary.com).