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Debates around eugenics
The downfall of eugenics on society
Social darwinism and its impacts on society
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Debates around eugenics
The downfall of eugenics on society
Social darwinism and its impacts on society
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
HISTORY 15200 - EXAM 1 - Akanksha Tripathy How did William Graham Sumner justify Social Darwinism? How was this ideology used in relation to Gilded Age economics? Social Darwinism is based on the theories of evolution developed by British naturalist Charles Darwin.
The ideology believed that there are some races or groups which inherently gifted by the intelligence, beauty and integrity. The people that located in the top of hierarchy is Aryans, according to Hitler. They
Similar to the middle class, Hitler also blamed the Jews for many of the problems that occurred at the time. As a result, the German’s supported the idea of the Final Solution. The Final Solution was the Nazi’s attempt to create the perfect Aryan race by annihilating the Jews. Through Hitler’s attempts to create a unified, perfect Aryan race by exterminating the common enemy, Jews, he was supported by the German’s. In document three, we see how appealing Hitler was in his speeches.
After the fall of the Nazis in the 1940s, eugenics continued to impact the lives of those in the United States negatively up until the 1970s. It was not due to the need to be “superior”, but to be able to control reproduction by increasing the top members and decreasing the lower members. The movement took place mainly in the East Coast during the Progressive Era, reaching its climax in the 1920s and 1930s with immigration control, marriage laws, and sterilization of those who were considered dangerous to the society. Due to the Nazis, their rise to power, and the horrifying Holocaust, it had formed the movements in the United States.
The interactions of Europeans outside of Europe increased steadily. With the discovery of vast non-European goods, their economic nature had been successful. Interaction between European and non-Europeans lasting from the late 1700s to early 1900s, attitudes greatly varied due to intellectual and cultural European trends that altered their point of view. European attitudes towards non-Europeans changed from cautious respect to a belief of superiority due to changes in intellectual thought inspired by nationalism, local dominion, and an idea of superiority over another nation. The rise of nationalism created a condescending and disrespectful European view towards non-Europeans in the time period of 1710-1910.
He believed that cultures should work together for the betterment of the world, and that races should be so connected to each other that they would be willing to die
During early colonization Europeans felt that non-Europeans lacked knowledge but were still worthy of respect, later we see a shift to imperialism and a more strengthened view of European superiority. Europeans discovered new lands and created several instances of interaction between Europeans and non-Europeans lasting from the mid 1700s to early 1900s. Early interactions were widely influenced by Enlightenment ideals that created an attitude of respect from the Europeans to non-Europeans. However, European attitudes towards non-Europeans shifted from cautious regard to extreme feelings of superiority. This change was also brought on by ideas such as social Darwinism.
He strongly believes that the Aryans are supreme in social and racial position by saying that even the “Nature” proves this assertion. Hitler contends, “Every animal mates only with a member of
He gave examples of historical evidence that he believed to be true. He claimed that cultures have always been led by the higher race. If the higher race mixed with or accepted the lower race then the culture would be destroyed or the entire race of people would be eliminated. He gave examples of the “mingling of Aryan blood with that of the lower people will result as the end of the cultured people”(313). He claimed “no more than Nature desires the mating of a weaker with stronger individuals, even less does she desire the blending of a higher with a lower race...over perhaps hundreds of thousands of years, might be ruined with one blow”(313).
Hitler believed that Germans were part of a race called “Aryans” meaning that they were superior to any other race only if the idealistic facial and body structure of the German person was blond hair,blue eyes,and Northern European descent. He believed the “Aryan” race would one day rule the world and that jewish people could not be German because
But no theories where as popular with the Nazis as Hebert Spencer’s Social Darwinism theory and Sir Francis Galton’s Eugenics theory. Social Darwinism is defined as “..study of human society, specifically a theory in sociology that
Eugenics is the science of using artificial selection to improve genetic features of the population. It is thought that improvement of the human race can be seen through sterilization of people who exhibit undesirable traits and selective breeding. Often called Social Darwinism, the concept was widely accepted during the time of World War I. It quickly became a taboo after World War II when Nazi Germany used it as an excuse for genocide. The thought of improving the human race by manipulating who is allowed to breed can either be appalling or compelling.
Social Darwinism started in Britain in 1870. Social Darwinism is basically a collection of theories that promotes the idea that that humans compete for existence and those that are more “fit” survive life. They based their theories on Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. Some Darwinists believed that the government shouldn’t change human nature by regulating economy or attempting to solve social problems. They promoted competition because they believed that some people, nations, or races were better fit to survive.
Eugenics The term eugenics was coined in 1883 by Francis Galton. He defined it as the study of “the conditions under which men of a high type are produced” and also as “the science which deals with all influences that improve the inborn qualities of a race”. However, it is not just a field of study and, could be taken as a social movement or policy as well. “Eugenics” may refer to the theory that infers hereditable intelligence and fortune which are possessed by the wealthy, successful and intelligent were made as a result of their good selective breeding, and that the lower classes would remain so because they continued to breed with other poor people from lower social classes or casts. Eugenics could be popular amongst people with a vested
Social Darwinism is the result of applying Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution to human society, and one of the forefront Social Darwinists was none other than William Graham Sumner. In general, the concept of Social Darwinism has many pros such as “breeding” out weakness and disease, supporting the strong, and encouraging the development of a more advanced society. It also as many disadvantages, however, such as a smaller gene pool, hindering the weak, and controlling who gets to have children. Using the writings of both Darwin and Sumner, these pros and cons will be explored to prove that the negatives of Social Darwinism outweigh the positives. To begin, the first pro of Social Darwinism is the elimination of weakness and disease.