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Charles Darwin was a naturalist that proposed the theory of natural selection and the theory of evolution still studied and widely accepted as true today. He wrote many books during his life, but the two most well-known books, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life (commonly referred to as Origin of Species) and The Descent of Man, and the Selection in Relation to Sex (commonly referred to as The Descent) presented his essential theory of natural selection to the scientific world as well as to the world at large. Within a few years of his first publication, Darwin’s theory of natural selection began to be popularized and interpreted by many in ways that departed from Darwin’s essential theory. One of the most famous of his misappropriators was the Englishman Herbert Spencer, who became famous for coining the phrase “survival of the fittest,” and who became the spokesman for what has become called “Social Darwinism.” But there were many others as well. In Germany, for example, German academics applied their own twist to Darwin’s theory to support the idea that there was a natural racial hierarchy that had evolved in the past, and that the German race was naturally superior to all other races. However, an examination of Darwin’s own words through his works demonstrates that Darwin did not advocate for racial superiority at all, and that those who tried to get that from his theory were simply misapplying his theory and drawing conclusions from it that was unsupported in the biological evidence.

Born on 12 February 1809, Charles Robert Darwin was raised with the high expectations that his grandfather and father placed upon him to succeed in life.1 Darwin had the fortune to be born into a wealthy, well educated family. His father and grandfather had been doctors and expected Darwin, who was always interested in science, to follow the same path. His mother was a member of the Wedgewood family, still known for their fine china.2 Darwin attended college in Edinburgh, then transferred to Cambridge to complete his studies. A self-professed agnostic, Darwin had a strong moral compass and a respect for all living things, which was reinforced during his time at Cambridge.3

Upon graduating from Cambridge, Darwin took the opportunity to serve as a naturalist for a scientific expedition through the Pacific Ocean. The HMS Beagle would serve as his home from December 1831 to October 1836.4 Darwin spent his time on the expedition cataloging species throughout the region, making important scientific conclusions from the observations he made that would later be published in his books. Darwin would eventually write that his voyage on the HMS Beagle was the most important event of his life, having a profound effect on his future.5

Voyage of the HMS Beagle | Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Upon returning to England in 1836, Darwin settled in London where he married, had children, and settled into life as a professor and writer. Darwin began an in depth study of his observations from his voyage, which became the basis for his theory of natural selection. Darwin had seen that it applied to animals and plants but was not sure if he could apply it to humans and have it be accepted by the scientific community, which still held to the larger Christian values of the time.6 Darwin believed that such proof would be in the explanations of the various human races, and he began to look for a way to explain that all the races had one ancient primitive common ancestor.7 By 1840, Darwin had put aside his search for the origin of man and his theory of evolution out of fear of prejudice. He knew his idea would be controversial and he abhorred being in the spotlight.8

Darwin was convinced by his friends to publish his theory of natural selection before his ideas were published by another scientist. The Origin of Species was published on 24 November 1859, a day known as the day modern biology began.9 The Origin of Species put forth Darwin’s theory of natural selection by discussing variation and the struggle to survive in the plant and animal world.10 Fearing this was enough to generate a negative reception of his theory of natural selection, Darwin decided to remove any discussion of man from his book.11

Cover page of Darwin’s first and most well-known book | Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Darwin’s The Origin of Species describes how plants and animals evolved using natural selection, limiting factors of nature, and variations which science would later know as genetics. He believed that the struggle to survive is a natural byproduct of reproduction; if too many organisms try to occupy the same area, some will have to die.12  This struggle is affected by three limiting factors: enemies, available food, and climate.13 Darwin also believed that this struggle for life was worst among organisms of the same species, resulting in the ones with the most advantages to survive and reproduce.14 It was through reproduction that organisms passed on traits that increased chances of survival. Darwin believed that natural selection increased diversity.15

Darwin spent the next years of his life writing other books and collecting facts to support his ideas about the evolution of man. The Descent of Man was published on 24 February 1871, with the purpose of considering the evolution of man from one common ancestor and to address the differences between the races of man.16 Darwin believed that man was a social creature and this led man to evolve to enjoy company, to feel for others, and to perform acts of charity. He believed that man would do what was best for the common good.17 Darwin wrote that slavery was a great crime, but was not viewed that way because it was usually one race exerting control of another race. He called this savage behavior because it showed indifference to the suffering of strangers.18

Cover page of Darwin’s second most well-known book | Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

In The Descent of Man, Darwin directly addressed Francis Galton, the father of the eugenics movement. Darwin wrote to Galton that savages eliminate the weak people quickly, leaving only the healthy to survive. Darwin stressed to Galton that civilized men do the best they can to stop the elimination of their fellow man by building asylums for the ill, creating welfare programs, and using medicine to save life. Darwin went on to say that it is evil for man to intentionally neglect the weak and helpless. It is a requirement of a civilized nation that man must endure the weak, allow them to survive and reproduce, knowing that they do not often marry or reproduce. Darwin called this a limiting factor.19 Darwin did not say for certain if all the races of man are different species or sub-species because, in Darwin’s opinion, the definition of species was not yet settled. He equated it to determining how many houses it would take to make a village, a town, or a city. Darwin was certain that man did descend from one single primitive ancestor and, although the races were different, they had more similarities than differences.20 Darwin wrote that the climate had an impact on man. He gave the example of the physical changes to appearance when Europeans moved to America. Darwin used this example to show that all the various races might be one race affected by variations in climate and environment.21

The Origin of Species was so well accepted by prominent scientists that it soon made its way to Germany where prominent German paleontologist, Heinrich Georg Bronn, upon reading the book, wrote to Darwin and offered to translate the book into German.22 Bronn believed that Darwin was attempting to establish one fundamental law of becoming and being that would govern all biology, which Bronn called the law of development by natural selection. Bronn believed that this law would explain all of organic nature, including man, through all of time. In this regard, Bronn believed that Darwin was too vague in stating the requirement for physical, mental, and emotional fitness in natural selection and in the struggle to survive. By thinking Darwin had made a mistake, Bronn took it upon himself to add his ideas to his translation of The Origin of Species. Bronn altered the theory of natural selection to say that the process moved animals, including man, to progress towards perfection. When Darwin learned of Bronn’s action in altering his theory, Darwin wrote a letter to Bronn requesting he remove that part from the next edition.23

HG Bronn | Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

After the publication of the incorrect German translation of The Origin of Species, many German academics began to advocate that the struggle to survive was a natural part of human existence. Wilhelm Preyer argued that for one group to rise up another must fail. Friedrich von Hellwald wrote the struggle to survive was the basic drive of human history and the cause of wars and violence between the nations and the races. Ludwig Gumplowicz wrote that all races compete for survival and the subjugation and elimination of ethnic groups was the foundation of civilization.24 These professors were instrumental in turning Darwin’s theory into German Darwinism in late nineteenth-century Germany by stating inequality of the races as fact. After their defeat in World War I, many Germans were radicalized by the professional classes that were seeking a strong Germany based on purity and strength. German scientists and other academics had advanced a theory of heredity that combined racism with nationalism to create a political ideology that would be adapted by the Nazi party.25

While some would argue that Darwin was an advocate of racial superiority, it is clear from reading the words Darwin left behind that he did not support eugenics or racial hygiene. Darwin was a peaceful scientist that wanted to avoid the spotlight to study evolution and variations within species. Darwin viewed racial differences as skin-deep, external, and a matter of personal preference.26 Darwin passed away in his home on 19 April 1882 and was buried in Westminster Abbey in honor of his contributions to modern biology.

  1. Andrew Noman, Charles Darwin Destroyer of Myths (New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2014), 1-2.
  2. Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 12.
  3.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 57-59.
  4.  Andrew Noman, Charles Darwin Destroyer of Myths (New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2014), 29.
  5.  Andrew Noman, Charles Darwin Destroyer of Myths (New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2014), 52.
  6.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 139.
  7.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 125-126.
  8.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 177.
  9. Tim M. Berra, Charles Darwin: The Concise Story of an Extraordinary Man (Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press, 2009), 62-66.
  10.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 291-292.
  11.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 311.
  12.  Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life,Volume 1 (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 79.
  13.  Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life,Volume 1 (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 83-84.
  14. Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life,Volume 1 (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 93-96.
  15.  Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life,Volume 1 (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 160-161.
  16.  Andrew Noman, Charles Darwin Destroyer of Myths (New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2014), 132.
  17.  Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 98-99.
  18.  Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 117.
  19.  Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 133-134.
  20.  Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 176-178.
  21.  Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex (New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1896), 196.
  22. Sander Gliboff, H.G. Bronn, Ernst Haeckel, and the Origins of German Darwinism: A Study in Translation and Transformation (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2008), 1.
  23.  Sander Gliboff, H.G. Bronn, Ernst Haeckel, and the Origins of German Darwinism: A Study in Translation and Transformation (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2008), 122-129.
  24. Richard Weikart, “The Origins of Social Darwinism in Germany, 1859-1895,” Journal of the History of Ideas 54, no. 3 (July 1993): 476-484.
  25. Henry Friedlander, The Origins of Nazi Genocide, From Euthanasia to the Final Solution (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1995), 1-12.
  26.  Adrian Desmond and James Moore, Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s Views on Human Evolution (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 373.

Recent Comments

127 comments

  • Andrea Ramirez

    Hi Tyler,
    This was an article that I really enjoyed reading, I think you really made it clear that Darwin’s ideas and, therefore, his theories do not advocate for racial superiority.
    Despite knowing about his work, I had no idea that this was one of the justifications the Germans took for their discriminatory choices. Therefore, I think your article was very informative.
    Also, I really liked the images you added as the covers of Darwin’s best known and most famous books, his expeditions through the Pacific Ocean in The HMS Beagle, Darwin himself, and Heinrich Georg Bronn.
    You really did a great job, congratulations!

  • Madeline Chandler

    This was an extremely well-written article, and it was so detailed. I have heard of Darwin’s story prior, however not this in-depth. It was so interesting because there were so many facts about him that I learned that are not commonly stated. This article really captures the change he prompted within science and society. Darwin’s teachings are accepted by some yet also rejected by many as well. This article did a great job of writing about such a famous controversial historical figure.

  • Alex Trevino

    This article presents Darwin’s life in a way where one can see the findings he presented aren’t the only important thing about him. Darwin’s accomplishments are something that many see as the definition of the man, however, such things as the family he made, and the thoughts of hesitation he had on releasing his findings through fear of what the people would think are not only important but instrumental in who Darwin is, and I believe that this article presents that wonderfully.

  • Jesslyn Schumann

    I really enjoyed the way you went into depth of all the versions of Darwin’s theory. I did not know that the Germans interpreted this theory as a baseline for how they were to discriminate and rule their country. This story really dove into portions of his life that are not told and highlighted major view points he had. Thank you for a wonderful read!

  • anthony Dinh

    This article has very interesting, I liked the mix of story telling, what Charles Darwin was thinking about. It really portrayed the paper as very intriguing especailly to the reader, telling the reader the facts and entertaining the reader with just a little bit of Darwin’s life. The map was also very helpful to visualize how big and how much traveling and stuff had to be brought to him for his research for his papers.

  • Daniel Gimena

    This was a very interesting article. I liked how the author used the article for both his argument and for an explanation of Darwin’s most famous books. As a business major that has not a big knowledge in these topics, I enjoyed learning about the Theory of Evolution, the Origin of Species, and the Descendent of Man.

  • Kayla Cooper

    This article is well told and overall a strong article. It fascinates me how Charles Darwin was able to come up with a theory of how natural selection works and come up with a theory of evolution. That takes a lot of time and brain work to think about and actually understand. This article really analyzes who Darwin is and how smart he is without having to say it. 

  • Amelie Rivas-Berlanga

    I love science and have always been amazed at how Darwin was able to understand and come up with a theory of evolution. It is interesting to read that he did not believe in racial superiority and that his work was used to push racial ideas forward. It is very telling that someone who studies and devoted their life to life on Earth has an understanding that race has nothing to do with social status or even being considered a different species. Incorrect translations of works or writing are something that has happened time and time again that has led to dozens of new ideas that claim to have the “research” backing it up. Great article!

  • Seth Roen

    It is interesting that people have the habit to twist and warp scientific discoveries to justify their goals and cruelty. Such happened to Darwin’s works and the evolution and success of the species. From how you wrote your article, Darwin published his works to unite humanity, not to justify the mistreatment of others, because one group was more successful. We are equally capable in commenting tremendous and terrible acts towards one another.

  • Cecilia Schneider

    This article brought a warm feeling when I read about Darwin’s thoughts on charity and helping our fellow humans survive. His thoughts on race being only skin deep reminds me of what a professor of mine said. He explained that we are all the same species and just as dogs may have different kinds, they are not aware. I wonder if there was ever a time where us humans did not realize or at least care that someone like us was not exactly like us. Race is a social construct which has now been deep rooted in society today. It can be traced in poverty, health care, and many other social issues simply because we allowed ourselves to continue to justify the mistreatment of our fellow human beings by applying biology to society.

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