Darwin Revelation

Casey Norton
Cyndi Brandenburg
Scientific Revolutions
12/13/08


Darwin Revelation


A topic that is prevalent within American culture since its beginnings is the idea of the American Dream. This topic is something that has intrigued me since highschool after learning about American history and society. It was also prevalent in many texts and movies that were shown to me through my youth. Through many of these novels, there was an idea of the impossibility of this dream and its emptiness. Along with the idea, that the dream becomes emptier each day because currently in American society, people want to acquire wealth. One of the examples that was shown to me in highschool was within the movie American Beauty featuring Kevin Spacey as Lester Burnham. He lacks happiness because he believes he is average and cannot amount to what society wants of him. This movie exemplifies the struggle of the individual to conform within American society.
This study of the American Dream continues to follow me as I continue to examine my own life and what I am learning currently. Throughout this semester of Scientific Revolutions, Darwinian thought and influence is something that raised many questions in my mind. When I look at Darwin and his many ideas, I look at them through how they have affected society today.
Charles Darwin’s belief of Natural Selection was based off the idea that there were favorable variations. Within these variations, come better variations to deal with external problems. According to Darwin in his book The Origin of Species, “Throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is bad, preserving and adding up all that is good” (113). In this Darwin describes the idea that the strongest will remain while the weaker are rejected. With the idea of Natural Selection, people could be lead to believe that the poor in American society were just a weaker being. In this case, the poor would remain poor while the rich got richer and did not feel guilt for not helping.
This idea follows one that is discussed in The Bell Curve by Richard J. Hernstein and Charles Murray. This book is along with the ideas of Herbert Spencer are viewed in an article by Rutledge M. Dennis called “Social Darwinism, Scientific Racism, and the Metaphysics of Race”. The article uses both examples to show the racism within science. Each idea allows for an inferior variation or race. Within written proof that there is an inferior race or being, it allows for people to continue suppression of a certain class or race.
In its beginnings, the American Dream was open to all that chose to come to America and flourish. Now, the dream is almost an impossible goal to reach. This idea is one that is recognized as one that even now people continue to strive for. Comedian, George Carlin explains the way people attempt to live their day to day lives.

He commentates on the emptiness of the dream and what it has become.

Appleman, Philip, ed. Darwin. New York: Norton & Company, 2001. 111-15.

Dennis, Rutledge M. "Social Darwinism, Scientific Racism, and the Metaphysics of Race." The Journal of Negro Education (1995): 1-4.