Reference no: EM133414320

Assignment:

Read Chapter Nine of The Ascent of Man, "The Ladder of Creation," and watch the ninth program in the BBC television series. Read as well Part VI, "Darwinian Patterns in Social Thought," in the Appleman edition about Darwin. Read in particular the selections from Carnegie and Kropotkin. You will also find useful additional information about the latter two in Wikipedia articles on Carnegie and Kropotkin, respectively.

Descriptive Writing Assignment

Bronowski believes that it is no accident that the two naturalists who put forward two very similar theories of evolution at virtually the same time were both British: Darwin and Wallace. Describe in one paragraph the ways in which the two were similar, and in another, contrasting paragraph, the ways in which they differed. Why do you think Darwin receives so much of the credit for the theory of evolution? What role did coincidence play in their respective lives and in the formation of their theoretical ideas? Consider in particular the example of Malthus. How were his ideas (in economics) related to those of Darwin and Wallace?

Analytical Writing Assignment

There were many different reactions to Darwin's evolutionary theory, but two that were very different are those of Andrew Carnegie and Peter Kropotkin. Describe briefly the views each held, and then account for the reasons why both could read Darwin's ideas in such very different ways. What were the important differences between Carnegie and Kropotkin in terms of their own experience that may account for the views they held? What lessons do their examples teach about drawing social conclusions from scientific theories?