Darwinism, Dominance, and Democracy
Editorial Reviews
Review
“Somit and Peterson assert that natural selection and genetic development created a human tendency for dominance, submission, hierarchy, and obedience, as opposed to equality and democracy.... They challenge facile hopes for expanding democracy but do not write democracy off.... their belief thhat 'civic indoctrination' can instill the values and practices of democracy deserves consideration.... The authors enrich debate about democracy...”–
“This short book is essentially a literature review of the major scholarship and generalizations in the field....Most scholars in the fields of politics and life science will be familiar with literature and the line of argument presented by the authors. More likely, this book would be of interest to a general audience and students who seek an introduction to some of the research and debate in the field of biopolitics.”–
Book Description
Somit and Peterson seek to explain an incontrovertible, though hardly welcome fact: throughout human history, the overwhelming majority of political societies have been characterized by the rule of the few over the many, by dominance and submission, by command and obedience. Evolutionary theory provides an important part of the explanation: humans have been subject to natural selection and one result is that the species tends to feature dominance hierarchies, obedience to authority, and indoctrinability as various means of maintaining social order. These evolution-based behavioral tendencies help to explain the success of authoritarianism and the relative lack of success of democracy over time.
Darwinism, Dominance, and Democracy
Darwinism, Dominance, and Democracy: The Biological Bases of Authoritarianism (Human Evolution, Behavior, and Intelligence),Albert Somit,Steven A. Peterson,Praeger Publishers,0275958175,Authoritarianism,Biopolitics,Democracy,History & Theory - General,Life Sciences - Evolution,Philosophy,Political,Political Doctrines,Political Ideologies - Democracy,Politics / Current Events,Social Darwinism,Sociobiology,Political Science / History & Theory
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