ANTH 2051 Study Guide - Scientific Racism, Social Darwinism, Catastrophism
Document Summary
It assumed that the world was only a few thousand years old, that its fundamental design had always existed as god had created it, and that it had changed little since creation. Eternal hierarchy minerals/plants insects/rept/low mammals humans angels god. A theory that the earth had changed only though major catastrophes set in motion by god, like the great flood detailed in the bible. This early form of catastrophism thus helped to explain. Modifications within the great chain of being and allowed the hierarchy of living things to remain intact and static. He challenged catastrophism by advancing a geological theory positing that the earth"s physical features result from steady, gradual processes. The earth was now thought to be millions, not thousands, of years old due to close observation of geological forms (like grand canyon). Geological change, although continuous, is nondirectional and nonprogressive.
