what is social darwinism

Social Darwinism is a theory developed in the 19th century that human groups and races are subject to the same laws of natural selection as plants and animals. It was used to support laissez-faire capitalism and political conservatism, and justified class stratification on the basis of “natural” inequalities among individuals. The theory held that the life of humans in society was a struggle for existence ruled by “survival of the fittest.” Social Darwinism was used as a philosophical rationalization for imperialist, colonialist, and racist policies, sustaining belief in Anglo-Saxon or Aryan cultural and biological superiority. The poor were the “unfit” and should not be aided; in the struggle for existence, wealth was a sign of success. Social Darwinism declined during the 20th century as an expanded knowledge of biological, social, and cultural phenomena undermined, rather than supported, its basic tenets.