O social evolutionism it is a theory of anthropology that states that every society begins primitively and evolves over time. According to this theory, every society, when it starts, has a more animalistic way of being and slowly and progressively reaches its development, thus becoming more civilized.
THE evolution theory, also known as evolutionary theory, is a similar concept that defends that species undergo mutations that end up defining their respective degrees of evolution.
Both concepts are based on the idea that evolution is a process that takes place gradually, however, the social evolutionism it is subordinate to social anthropology, which considers society as a whole, that is, it carries out an analysis through observation, taking into account culture, habits, aspects, etc.
already the evolution theory is subordinate to biological anthropology, and considers that organisms are capable of undergoing changes as the needs of the environment demand.
Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution
Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882) was the main scientist responsible for evolutionary theory. In 1831, he embarked on an expedition around the world, together with botanist John Stevens Henslow, aboard an English ship named Beagle. The two friends' expedition lasted five years (1831 – 1836) and during this period, Darwin had the chance to carry out several studies and observe several species.
He concluded that although many of the species were similar, over time they suffered mutations that could persist into successive generations. In a way, these mutations influenced the continuity of the species and were responsible for the fact that some stood out in relation to others.
Despite not being able to figure out why these mutations happen, Darwin concluded that, in this mutation process, some species became stronger and eventually had a higher continuity/survival index future. Then came the concept of natural selection, what é an evolutionary process in which the strongest survive. This process is one of the concepts of Darwinism.
See more about natural selection and evolution theory.
Darwinism
O Darwinism is a set of ideas and concepts related to evolutionism where the main idea is that the strongest species survive and/or that best adapt to the environment. This line of reasoning had a direct influence on the concept of social evolutionism, giving rise to the term social Darwinism, which states that the strongest societies and/or the ones that best adapt to the environment survive. Unfortunately, this concept ended up generating a series of ethnic and xenophobic problems, as some societies began to consider themselves superior to others.
See more about Darwinism and evolutionism.
cultural evolutionism
O cultural evolutionism considers that the development of societies takes place from the growth and changes suffered. just like in the social Darwinism, this generated problems between different ethnicities and nationalities because everything that resembled European culture was considered more evolved than what was closer to primitive culture.
Social Evolutionism and Colonialism
O social evolutionism states that societies evolve over time, believing, therefore, that some become superior to others. This idea is directly linked to the practice of colonialism, where societies considered superior exploit the so-called inferior in order to make them colonies.
