Psychology of Evolution When Charles Darwin published his book The Origin of Species in 1859, some people called him 'the most dangerous man in England'. The book moved the scientific world into a period of intensive discussions. Although Darwin wasn't the first person to talk about 'evolution' (the ancient Greeks and some 18th-century pre-decessors of Darwin broadened the way for acceptance of this theory), his book laid the foundation for the modern evolution-debate. Gradually this theory started to influence the world - politics, science, religion - many people adjusted their way of thinking. People started to explain history and futuristic views in an evolutionistic sense. Now, 143 years later, the evolution theory is accepted worldwide. What influence did it have on the thoughts and motivations of individual people, certain groups of people and even whole societies? The consequences of changing thoughts In the 19th century the gap between religion and science wasn't as large as it is nowadays. Scientific discoveries were often viewed as a supporting proof for the existence of an intelligent creator. Two years before the publication of The Origin of Species, biologist L.Agassiz wrote that "design, wisdom and majesty" are displayed within the variety of life on earth. According to Agassiz natural history was meant to analyze 'the thoughts of the Creator of the universe'. In reference to Darwinism Agassiz stated in 1867: "I trust to outlive this mania". He wasthe only important, outspoken scientific opponent of Darwinism in America during the 1860's.

Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz (1807-1873)

But no matter how much 'intelligent design' was accepted in those days, the thoughts and opinions slowly shifted towards evolutionistic thinking, thereby creating a larger distance between science and religion. The sceptisism of many people caused strong doubts as to the reliability of the creation-account (Genesis chapter 1 and 2) in the Bible. A good example of such criticism is Charles Lyell, a geologist, who strongly criticized the Bible.

Lyell rebelled against the prevailing theories of geology of the time. He thought the theories were biased, based on the interpretation of Genesis. He assumed it would be more practical to exclude sudden geological catastrophes to vouch for fossil remains of extinct species and believed it was necessary to create a vast time scale for Earth's history. This concept was called Uniformitarianism. The second edition of his 12-edition book Principles of Geology, introduced new ideas regarding metamorphic rocks. It described rock changes due to high temperature in sedimentary rocks adjacent to igneous rocks. His third volume dealt with paleontology and stratigraphy. Lyell stressed that the antiquity of human species was far beyond the accepted theories of that time.

Charles Lyell (1797-1875)

Because of the increasing criticism, many people started to accept the Darwinism as a replacement for an 'intelligent Creator'. Ideas of science were held in high esteem. In that sense, the publication of The Origin of Species was well-timed. People were already amazed because of the startling discoveries made by science. The Industrial Revolution provided a wealth of new inventions that gave man a serious material advantage. It was not strange that people started to rely on science. The more the scientific world promised, the more people started to follow its ideas and principles. A religious downfall The more modern science became established, the more religion was viewed as an obstacle, thus creating an environment in which people opposed to the idea of intelligent design were able to speak out freely. The religious world initially did not agree with the idea of evolution. Religious leaders resisted this theory fiercely. However, such resistance, often without valid counter-evidence, and  the dogmatic attitude of some religious leaders caused the opposite of what they wanted to achieve: people were drawn away from the churches. After all, the church condemned and punished sincere scientists before, scientists who made factual observations (Galileo Galileï) that attacked the church's stubborn dogma's. Having all of this in mind, people started to develop a negative attitude towards religion. Science as God Science presented balanced views, often supported by evidence, while religion held on to aged teachings that were not able to withstand scientific pressure. People glorified science. Many new discoveries were welcomed enthousiastically. Modern science became well established. But in this process a certain danger started to develop. Some scientists proudly presented their theories as facts, giving many impressive explanations to move people to choose their side. One could reason: 'science has done such a lot for us, why would they be wrong now?' This created an environment in which people did not investigate. People were not encouraged to investigate. Thus, tragically, when such scientists made mistakes, many people blindly walked into the same direction, ending up in a pool of unproven, prejudiced theories, that led to great dissapointment. (One example of willfull deceit: the Piltdown Man). Religion, pressured by the people, slowly started to develop a more acceptive attitude towards evolution. After all, if they wouldn't do that, they would lose their members. Individual religious leaders gave in to the public opinion and accepted a blend of evolution and creation. A report of a commission under the archbishop of York declared: "There can be no objection against an evolution-theory on the bases of Genesis chapter 1 and 2, because developed Christians commonly agree that the origin is mythological and the value for us is symbolical and not historical." Attempts to unite the Bible and evolution affected the credibility of the Bible, resulting in a worldwide scepticism towards this book and towards the idea of an Intelligent Creator. Philosophy and Politics The Origin of Species clearly emphasized the idea of natural selection and survival of the fittest. Those ideas exerted a strong influence on 19th-century philosophers. Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) and Karl Marx (1818-1883), wellknown philosophers, influenced the thoughts and acts of people and politics. Both  accepted evolution as the only explanation for the origin of life. As Nietsche said: "Darwin's book is of good use to me as a natural scientific foundation for the 'class-war' in history." His conviction was that "The strong, brave, ruly and proud ones fit best into the society that is to come." Nietzsche’s thought  had a great influence on society during the 20th century, especially in Continental Europe. During the last decade of Nietzsche’s life and the first decade of the 20th century, his thought was particularly attractive to avant-garde artists who saw themselves on the periphery of established social fashion and practice. Here, Nietzsche’s advocacy of new, healthy beginnings, and of creative artistry in general stood forth. His tendency to seek explanations for commonly-accepted values and outlooks in the less-elevated realms of sheer animal instinct was also crucial to Sigmund Freud’s development of psychoanalysis.

Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900) Later, during the 1930’s, aspects of Nietzsche’s thought were espoused by the Nazis and Italian Fascists. It was possible for the Nazi interpreters to assemble, quite selectively, various passages from Nietzsche’s writings whose juxtaposition appeared to justify war, aggression and domination for the sake of nationalistic and racial self-glorification.

A better future?

Darwin believed and wrote in a letter to a friend that in the future 'numerous lower races would be eliminated by higher civilized races in this world.' As a precedent he referred to the European victories and contributed this to 'the battle for existence'. In this sense, the 'survival of the fittest' was given a social and political meaning because complete societies started to believe that their position was reached through this 'battle for existence', as described by H.G.Wells in his book The Outline of History. According to the book Milestones of History, for some war became a 'biological need'. This book also comments that "Darwinistic ideas made up an integrating part of Hitlers teachings regarding racial superiority." Although Hitler used religion and religious ideas to accomplish his purposes, darwinistic thinking also influenced his thoughts and acts. The expectation of philosophers like Marx, Nietzsche and also Darwin was that the 'battle for existence' would improve the fate of mankind. As stated in the Origin of Species: "All mental capacities and all physical gifts will grow towards perfection more and more." But did this really happen? Can we observe progressive improvement in this world? Are we really reaching higher levels? I think the answer is clear. Darwin nurtured false expectations. Human philosophers fail to foresee the truth and consequences of their philosophies. A worldwide 'social degeneration' brought us into a unique century marked by an increase of wars, tribal conflicts, a downfall of morality, an increase of crime, an earth that is plagued by pollution. It is obvious that the consequence of evolutionistic thinking can be catastrophic. What if the whole world follows a theory that is not true? Investigate and find out for yourself. Nobody wants to end up in a pool of unproven, prejudiced theories...