Evolution Social and OrganicLewis, Arthur M. (Arthur Morrow)
Philosophy
Evolution Social and Organic
Lewis, Arthur M. (Arthur Morrow)
Evolution; Socialism; Sociology
The chief sinner against this first canon of dialectical thinking
is our old friend the theologian. When the evolutionary naturalists
demonstrated the hopeless untruth of his “revealed” legends about the
origin of men and things, he sought refuge in the ingenious theory that
these fables while scientifically indefensible were, notwithstanding,
spiritually true. In short, scientific truth and spiritual truth were
so distinct as to have no vital relations. These “artful dodgers” have
relieved controversial literature of much of its wonted heaviness and
contributed generally to the gaiety of the nations.
Socialists have always been among the first to enjoy these entertaining
performances, and it seems like divine retribution when these same
theological and “Reverend” persons tumble over into the Socialist camp
and bring their obsolete methods of thinking with them.
They dub themselves “Christian” Socialists and proceed to show that
“Socialism is a philosophy concerning the social and economic life of
man, and not the religious at all.” When Marx declared that political
and legal and other social institutions and ideas were the result of
economic conditions and class interests, religious institutions and
ideas were, of course, exempt.
After a mental contortion like that, what is to prevent a
reconciliation between the 17th century twaddle of the methodist pulpit
and the materialist conception of history?
Those who break the second canon given, are not all theologians. Among
those who ignore distinctions that do exist, the biological sociologist
is entitled to conspicuous mention.
August Comte, who “attempted to make of sociology a sort of
transcendental biology,” had at least this excuse that he wrote his
positivist philosophy before Darwin published his “Origin of Species”
and, therefore, while biology was yet in long clothes and sociology
was unborn. Although Comte is generally regarded as the founder of
sociology, these limitations made it impossible to do little more than
invent the name and foresee its possibility.
These excuses, however, can scarcely be invoked for Haeckel, who, as
we have already seen, wholly ignored in his inferences, fundamental
differences between the division of labor in animal societies and
that division in human societies. Haeckel’s biological sociology
conveniently overlooks the rather important fact that while a working
bee can not by any possibility act as a drone, the working man has
at least no physical disabilities to prevent him from doing anything
that pertains to the role of a prince. Reasoning by analogy is always
dangerous, especially when the analogy itself breaks down.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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