Darwin and Fundamentalism (Postmodern Encounters) - Softcover

Charles Darwin evolutionized the western view of human development and inaugurated a paradigmatic shift that has reverberated throughout science ever since. His work and conclusions surrounding evolution, however, have been employed in areas utterly distinct from biology to become justifications for ideology across the politial spectrum. This rise of fundamentalism, both political and religious, has been a harrowing reminder that liberal democracy cannot hope to automatically succeed irrespective of cultural context. This book examines the use of Darwinist ideas in a plethora of regimes, and considers his legacy and reception outside the scientific community in which he ostensibly worked.