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The Social Gospel movement emphasized the importance of social justice and helping the less fortunate, inspiring efforts to address poverty, inequality, and labor issues. Social Darwinism, on the other hand, applied Darwin's theory of natural selection to society, promoting the idea that only the fittest individuals or groups should survive and thrive, leading to justification of laissez-faire capitalism and inequality.
Social Darwinism is a concept that suggests society benefits when the most capable individuals thrive, while those deemed less able are left behind. In practice, this ideology tends to benefit those who are already privileged and powerful, as it justifies their dominance and reinforces existing social inequalities.
It led Europeans to believe that they were better than Asians and Africans.
This is how Hitler used social Darwinism. He showed videos of animals killing the weaker to promote this idea. He viewed Jews as a weaker species, so he killed them. He also view old or crippled people as weak and thus, useless to society, so he killed them. Hitler believed that Germans were the superior race. To Hitler there was no point to keeping 'weaklings' alive because they were a burden to society and they 'spoiled' the human species. Note: The name 'Social Darwinism' is misleading, Darwin had nothing to do with Social Darwinism, he taught that animals with the right characteristics survived, those without died, NOT animals killing each other for survival (survival of the fittest).
It led Europeans to believe that they were better than Asians and Africans
Manifest destiny and social Darwinism were used to justify horrible actions toward minority peoples during the 1800s. Manifest destiny was the idea that the US should expand westward, and was used to steal Native American lands. Social Darwinism was the idea that the lighter skinned people were, the better they were. It was used to justify institutional racism.
The goal of sociology is to study and understand society, including the relationships and interactions between individuals and social institutions. It aims to explain social behavior, social structures, and social change in order to contribute to a better understanding of society as a whole.
The ideals of social Darwinism promoted the belief in survival of the fittest and competition among nations, fueling militarism and imperialism. This led to increased tensions among European powers as they competed for resources and colonies, ultimately contributing to the complex web of alliances and conflicts that erupted into World War 1.
Both ideas sought to justify imperialism and colonialism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Social Darwinism argued that only the fittest societies would survive, legitimizing the dominance of Western empires. The White Man's Burden similarly justified Western colonization as a moral duty to civilize and uplift non-Western societies.
Social Darwinism was used to justify low wages by arguing that the natural order favored those who were most fit and skilled, thus deserving higher pay. Those who earned low wages were seen as less competent and deserving of better compensation, aligning with the belief that competition and survival of the fittest should dictate social and economic outcomes.
A central theme of hitlers thinking was the idea of struggle.. in the 19th century the naturalist Charles Darwin had explained how in the world of nature, some species with favorable variations survived better than others when the environment changed. Darwin called this 'natural selection.' Social darwinism was a mutation of this idea, suggesting that what applied to nature could apply to human society - that the strong prevail over the weak, and that superior races prevail over inferior races. this concept, of struggle and survival appealed to hitler.
No. The core of Social Darwinism is survival of the fittest. This is seen as a description of what actually happens in nature. It is based on the assumption that there is fierce competition for scarce resources. It is not some biological doctrine of predestination, as people have to work (and/or fight) for their survival by using their abilities (fitness). Survival of the fittest does not mean that the "fit" will survive regardless of what they do or don't do. It means that they are better equipped to fight and win.