Notes Lecture 10/20/2010 Progress and its Challengers I. A Century of Progress II. Continuation of the Scientific Revolution III. Degeneration and Apocalypse 1. Progress is at its peak 50 years after Franco-Prussian war a. During time of peace between superpowers b. Eiffel Tower--erected by French gov. in 1889: one century after of French Revolution b.i. Symbolizes the future, iron of the industrial revolution, a structure that reaches towards the sky b.ii. Science and engineering = progress b.ii.1. Rational, escaping the past b.ii.2. The future lies in the hands of the proletariat 2. Great thinkers wonder what knowledge of nature and man a. Charles Darwin: evolution of species through natural selection, God moving further outside the natural order a.i. Similar to Malthus: super abundance of life, not enough resources to sustain all life, depends on the adaptability of the individual to the environment, struggle for existence a.ii. Elements of society to preserve life...this counteracts the natural order, the weaker actually get longer lives, life expectancy b. Francis Galton: Eugenics b.i. The weak are reproducing more rapidly--eugenics will help to insure the status of the smartest, "fittest" and most talented individuals c. Karl Marx c.i. Basic units of society are organized by classes c.i.1. between Struggle the strong and weak d. Sigmund Freud d.i. Conscious and unconscious are equally important d.ii. Civilizationa struggle between nations d.iii. Naturalizing the human mind e. F. Nietzoche e.i. Muse: Napoleon Bonaparte, did what he wanted regardless of what those around him thought e.ii. Christianity: glorification of the weak, this is humanity descending into mediocrity e.iii. Man is a part of nature and should not resist its ways 3. Scientific revolution stirs up conflict a. The world can be divided into those who succeed and those who fail b. Thinking of the world as a cluster of struggles instead of a common civilization, degeneration becomes more prominent c. Nations that are growing and prosperous are key to the future, those that are shrinking are a part of the past
c.i. Example, Franco-Prussian war...Germany is a surging power d. Idea of dividing people into races becomes more important than ever before d.i. Biological determinism: all of history is a process of struggles between races and ethnicities d.ii. People must be alert to the signs of degeneration--it is becoming ever so prevalent d.ii.1. Germany: ChamberlainFoundations of the 19th century d.ii.2. French population being sustained by non-Frenchmen... more degeneration of civilized world...conflicts come from within