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Social Darwinism in American Thought by Richard Hofstadter

Social Darwinism in American Thought

By Richard Hofstadter

By Richard Hofstadter

By Richard Hofstadter

By Richard Hofstadter

Category: Science | History

Category: Science | History

Paperback $28.00

Sep 01, 1992 | 288 Pages

Ebook $27.99

Jun 28, 2016

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    Social Darwinism in American Thought by Richard Hofstadter
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    Sep 01, 1992 | 288 Pages
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    About Social Darwinism in American Thought

    Social Darwinism in American Thought portrays the overall influence of Darwin on American social theory and the notable battle waged among thinkers over the implications of evolutionary theory for social thought and political action. Theorists such as Herbert Spencer and William Graham Sumner adopted the idea of the struggle for existence as justification for the evils as well as the benefits of laissez-faire modern industrial society. Others such as William James and John Dewey argued that human planning was needed to direct social development and improve upon the natural order. Hofstadter’s classic study of the ramifications of Darwinism is a major analysis of the social philosophies that animated intellectual movements of the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era.

    About Social Darwinism in American Thought

    Social Darwinism in American Thought portrays the overall influence of Darwin on American social theory and the notable battle waged among thinkers over the implications of evolutionary theory for social thought and political action. Theorists such as Herbert Spencer and William Graham Sumner adopted the idea of the struggle for existence as justification for the evils as well as the benefits of laissez-faire modern industrial society. Others such as William James and John Dewey argued that human planning was needed to direct social development and improve upon the natural order. Hofstadter’s classic study of the ramifications of Darwinism is a major analysis of the social philosophies that animated intellectual movements of the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era.

    Product Details

    Paperback | $28.00
    Published by Beacon Press
    Sep 01, 1992 | 288 Pages | 5-3/8 x 8 | ISBN 9780807055038

    Ebook | $27.99
    Published by Beacon Press
    Jun 28, 2016 | ISBN 9780807054628

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    Praise

    A book that is in many ways a model of its kind . . . Mr. Hofstadter is compact, lucid, informed, vigorous . . . If you really want to know why and how some of the contradictions in American social thought came into being, Social Darwinism is as excellent a study as you can hope to find. —The New York Times

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