Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Social Darwinism 1857
Herbert Spencer's article "Progress: It's Law and Cause" in which he discusses his theories of evolution prior to Darwin's publishing.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Ap Us History: 1865 1898: Social Darwinism in the Gilded Age
Discusses Social Darwinism and the negative repercussions it had on society during the Gilded Age. Includes questions for students at end.
National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: Taming the Octopus: Social Policy: Social Darwinism vs. Social Gospel
Two Protestant clergymen discuss the morality of wealth: William Graham Sumner defends it and the practices that create it, while Walter Rauschenbusch questions its impact on society and calls for its Christianization.
Other
Small Planet: Social Darwinism,reason or Rationalization?
This site clearly explains the concept of Social Darwinism, then asks students to evaluate its implications in an example. Good lesson in critical thinking and philosophy.
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: Social Darwinism
Learn about the origins and history of Social Darwinism in America.
Cosmo Learning
Cosmo Learning: Darwin's Legacy
A collection of video lectures dedicated to study Charles Darwin's legacy. The course was hosted at Stanford University. The lectures cover a broad range of topics from evolution vs. creationism, Darwin's life and work, social Darwinism,...
History Teacher
Historyteacher.net: Intellectual/social/cultural Movements 1870's 1914 (5)
Take this 12 question matching quiz on the intellectual, social and cultural movements from the 1870's to 1914.
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: Social Darwinism and American Laissez Faire Capitalism
Activity-based resource in which students apply Constitutional ideas to evaluate the Federal State Tax Law as they make a case for or against abolishing the tax. Site contains comprehensive resources on the topic.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Sociology
A very detailed look at the development of the field of sociology. Looks at its historical roots, the earliest sociologists, and explains major theories that it was based on, and theories and schools of thought that evolved from those....
British Library
British Library: Discovering Literature: Romantics & Victorians Fin De Siecle
Read articles that address the following questions about the end of the 19th-century literature: What are the key tropes of late 19th-century literature? How did writers respond to the desires and anxieties of the time? How did...
Brigham Young University
Byu: Wwi Document Archive: General Friedrich Von Bernhardi
Short biography describes Friedrich von Bernhardi and his writings using social Darwinism and biological evidence to support his militarial ideologies of German expansion and conquest.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Old Values vs. New Values
An overview of the clash between the old way of life of the Victorian Age and the new, the Jazz Age.
Other
H Net: General Friedrich Von Bernhardi
This biography of the German General Friedrich von Bernhardi (1849-1930) also provides selected chapters from his book The Next War in which he stated a country must seek world power or decline, a view later adopted by Adolf Hitler and...
British Library
British Library: Discovering Literature: Romantics & Victorians Visions
From eccentric inventions to fears of invasion; from social degeneration to visions of the apocalypse - these articles research literary depictions of the future and how they reflect contemporary fears of social, technological, and...
Other
Unc Charlotte: History of Scientific Racism [Pdf]
A scholarly article by Anthropology Professor Jonathan Marks on the history of scientific racism. Published in the Encyclopedia of Race and Racism.
National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Teacher Serve: Religious Liberalism
Religious liberalism has played a major role in America's religious dialogue in the last century. This National Humanities Center site explains the movement and its impact.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Meritocracy
This entry from Wikipedia provides details on the definition and history of the concept of meritocracy, along with real life examples from the past and the present.
University of Virginia Library
Prism: Notes on the State of Virginia
[Free Registration/Login Required] Read the complete text of Thomas Jefferson's "Notes on the State of Virginia" and highlight rhetoric in blue, orientalism in red, and social Darwinism in green. When finished, click save to see how...
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Progressivsim Sweeps the Nation
The government that supported laissez-faire policies and Social Darwinism was finally considered corrupt and immoral. Read about the ideas of the Progressive Era and see how these ideas were put into activist government policy.
Curated OER
Educational Technology Clearinghouse: Clip Art Etc: Herbert Spencer
An English philosopher most prominently known as the father of Social Darwinism, a school of thought that applied the evolutionist theory of survival of the fittest to sociological concerns of educatioon and class struggle.