It is pretty well known that Charles Darwin got some of his ideas on natural selection from Adam Smith. As Matt Ridley explains nicely:
Ideas evolve by descent with modification, just as bodies do, and Darwin at least partly got this idea from economists, who got it from empirical philosophers. Locke and Newton begat Hume and Voltaire who begat Hutcheson and Smith who begat Malthus and Ricardo who begat Darwin and Wallace. Before Darwin, the supreme example of an undesigned system was Adam Smith’s economy, spontaneously self-ordered through the actions of individuals, rather than ordained by a monarch or a parliament.
Not many people realize though (myself included until last night) that Marx was in turn a huge fan of Darwin’s work. From a footnote in Anthony Giddens’ Capitalism and Modern Social Theory:
The publication of The Origin of Species was also regarded by Marx and Engels as an event of major significance, offering a direct parallel to their own interpretation of social development. Marx wrote to Darwin offering to dedicate the first volume of Capital to him. (Darwin declined the offer.)
Burn! I wonder if Marx took it personally. But really, does this mean that Marx was a social Darwinist?
- Josh McCabe
I believe that Marx would have considered Social Darwinism to be laughable because Marx believed that science could overcome just about anything – including the negative habits that Social Darwinists spoke about. Hey, Marx believed that “Productive Forces” (e.g., labor, raw materials, etc.) were not seen by most people as the driving force of capitalism because the productive relations of capitalism give a superlative veneer to commodities and capital. So why would he consider “negative cultural habits” to be incorrigible?
Quick point: Darwin himself, since he drew heavily from the classical economists, would have laughed at Social Darwinism given that Darwin would have appreciated the fact that human beings have purposiveness. Genetic characteristics, on the other hand, do not. What’s more, it may be quite “fit” for a child in the inner-city to embrace a life-style of crime and drugs rather than learning Algebra since s/he is hoping for survival.
Engels’ graveside eulogy for Marx draws the connection to Darwin directly: “Just as Darwin discovered the law of development of organic nature, so Marx discovered the law of development of human history …”
I think that social darwinism is too vague a term to be useful in most discussions. I would prefer we discuss more specific beliefs or values.
Many Marxists have written about the inspiration Marx and Engels drew from Darwin and connections between their work. Ian Angus and Phil Gasper are two contemporary sources. Here’s one short article:
http://www.isreview.org/issues/65/feat-MarxDarwin.shtml
Erik Wright, Elliott Sober, and Andrew Levine also have a short book about historical materialism, one chapter of which argues that natural selection and historical materialism are importantly different in the strength of claims they make. I’m not sure I agree with the argument, but I like the book a lot.
Creationist and Darwinists
Can any body tell me? Who has made the perfect, mathematical and complex laws of Physics, laws of Chemistry and laws of biology , complex reproductive system in human and animal and plants ?. Scientists are only discovering these laws and in through obeying these law making some imperfect or semi perfect things. Yet the scientists have discovered a tiny part of the Creator’s innovative world. 99% yet to be explored. Keeping in view only a stupid or illogical persons can deny the perfect, and the wise Creator.
The Darwin has proposed a theory not fact . His tautology could not be proved by any undoubtedly/real true scientific evidence/fact. After studying 10,000 fossils, Harun Yahya (click here to explore) a Turkish biologist has challenged all Darwinists of the world to produce a single intermediate fossil, he will pay US$100 billion . He has proved that every species appeared in perfect shape and disappeared and new specie appeared in perfect shape. No incomplete bird can survive and incomplete eye can see. A half build eye and half build wing cannot see and cannot fly.
Survival of the fittest? Why love existence? Why a mother dies for her child?, Why A perfect family system of Honey bee functions?. Why Peacock beautiful colors appeared?. Darwinists have failed miserably to explain the facts of creation. So fact of existence of creator of a perfect, very beautiful and complex creation is just like Sun on the sky but blind cannot see.
Click to watch video : Death of Darwinism and Win of Creationists
Click to watch video : Fossil Record Prove Creationism
Click to watch Video : Collapse to Ethism
Click to Watch video : Disasters Darwinism Brought to Humanity
Indeed Creation and ordering of the universe is seen as an act of prime mercy for which all creatures sing God’s glories and bear witness to God’s unity and lordship. According to the Islamic teachings, God exists without a place. According to the Qur’an, “No vision can grasp Him, but His grasp is over all vision. God is above all comprehension, yet is acquainted with all things” (Qur’an 6:103)