USA HISTORY

WESTWARD EXPANSION INDUSTRIALIZATION URBANIZATION 1870 1900

AMERICAN INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT IN THE GILDED AGE

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Which of the following is the best definition of Social Darwinism?
A
A theory that the rich are rich because they’re better, and the poor are poor because they’re worse
B
The belief that helping the poor will help society
C
A theory that the government should help out the economy in a time of crisis
D
The idea of the government should stay “hands-off” in the economy
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -Social Darwinists believe in “survival of the fittest”-the idea that certain people become powerful in society because they are innately better. Social Darwinism has been used to justify imperialism, racism, eugenics and social inequality at various times over the past century and a half.

Detailed explanation-2: -Many Social Darwinists embraced laissez-faire capitalism and racism. They believed that government should not interfere in the “survival of the fittest” by helping the poor, and promoted the idea that some races are biologically superior to others.

Detailed explanation-3: -Social Darwinism theorists believed that the poor were unfit and should not be aided. The poor are meant to struggle for existence. For them, wealth was the symbol of success and fitness. They used the theory of imperialist, colonist, and racist policies to define the concept of poverty.

Detailed explanation-4: -The theory held that due to natural selection, the most intelligent, industrious, and productive people would grow wealthy and survive while the uneducated and lazy would remain poor and die off.

There is 1 question to complete.