Darwin, believed and taught that women were inferior to men.
His views greatly influenced society and scientific research both in his days and for later generations.
Darwin’s book The Descent of Man is a deeply racist book that
clearly spells out the troubling implications of evolution when applied to human beings. But his statements about women are no better. The book contains a section titled “Mental Powers of Men and Women” where he stated that men attain “a higher eminence, in whatever he takes up, than can women whether requiring deep thought, reason, or imagination, or merely the use of the senses and hands.” He further claimed that “Man is more courageous, pugnacious and energetic than woman, and has a more inventive genius. His brain is absolutely larger . . . .”
Darwin had an evolutionary reason for this hypothesis. He believed.jpg)
that the struggle to reproduce was central to evolution. He believed that men were engaged in continual “struggle with other males for the possession of the females.” This struggle meant that only the smartest, strongest, and most capable men succeeded in procuring wives, creating continual pressure for “fitter” men. Darwin saw women as more passive in this regard. He believed that selection created stronger men over time, but it didn’t act on women at all.
As a young man, he wrote that the primary advantage of marriage
included children and having a wife as a constant companion, a friend in old age “who will feel interested in one, [an] object to be beloved and played with—better than a dog anyhow—Home, and someone to take care of the house—Charms of music and female chit-chat. These things are good for one’s health.”
Some nineteenth-century evolutionary biologists argued for women’s inferiority to attack the contemporary women’s movement. They believed that “unchecked female militancy threatened to produce a perturbance of the” roles of the sexes and “divert the orderly process of evolution.”
Darwin’s book The Descent of Man is a deeply racist book that
Darwin had an evolutionary reason for this hypothesis. He believed
.jpg)
As a young man, he wrote that the primary advantage of marriage
Some nineteenth-century evolutionary biologists argued for women’s inferiority to attack the contemporary women’s movement. They believed that “unchecked female militancy threatened to produce a perturbance of the” roles of the sexes and “divert the orderly process of evolution.”
One sees a similarity with the attitude expressed by the men in Esther 1:16–21.
(Then Memucan said in the presence of the king and the officials, “Not only against the king has Queen Vashti done wrong, but also against all the officials and all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus. For the queen’s behavior will be made known to all women, causing them to look at their husbands with contempt, since they will say, ‘King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, and she did not come.’ This very day the noble women of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen’s behavior will say the same to all the king’s officials, and there will be contempt and wrath in plenty. If it please the king, let a royal order go out from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes so that it may not be repealed, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus. And let the king give her royal position to another who is better than she. So when the decree made by the king is proclaimed throughout all his kingdom, for it is vast, rall women will give honor to their husbands, high and low alike.” This advice pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed.)
In other words, evolutionary ideas about the inferiority of women gave a scientific veneer to the worst stereotypes about female inferiority.
Among those who objected to Darwin’s views on women was Mrs. Caroline Kennard (1827–1907), who sent a letter to Darwin inquiring about his views. As someone whose scientific achievements allowed her to be listed as a specialist on the botany of ferns and mosses in the 1886 Scientist’s International Directory, she was an example of a woman who disproved Darwin’s opinions regarding female.jpg)
inferiority.
Darwin wrote back, assuring her that his views were not being misunderstood. “Women . . . are inferior intellectually,” he wrote. But he conceded that he believed women were superior to men in moral qualities. Darwin concluded the letter by stating, “I have written this letter . . . only for your private use,” implying that it should not be shared with others."
Among those who objected to Darwin’s views on women was Mrs. Caroline Kennard (1827–1907), who sent a letter to Darwin inquiring about his views. As someone whose scientific achievements allowed her to be listed as a specialist on the botany of ferns and mosses in the 1886 Scientist’s International Directory, she was an example of a woman who disproved Darwin’s opinions regarding female
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Darwin wrote back, assuring her that his views were not being misunderstood. “Women . . . are inferior intellectually,” he wrote. But he conceded that he believed women were superior to men in moral qualities. Darwin concluded the letter by stating, “I have written this letter . . . only for your private use,” implying that it should not be shared with others."
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