Herbert Spencer.
Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 - 8 December 1903) was an
English philosopher.
He was born in Derby. Educated mostly at home, Spencer worked first as a railways civil engineer beginning at age 16, writing in his spare time. In 1848, Spencer became a sub-editor on
The Economist, then as now an important financial newspaper.
From that time onwards, he was a professional writer. In 1852 Spencer published
The Developmental Hypothesis, and in 1855 produced
Principles of Psychology. Spencer published a number of such works devoted to different domains, including
Principles of Sociology and
Principles of Ethics. They included, among other things, his ideas on
evolution, which he saw as leading to an era of greater interpersonal cooperation. Spencer is seen by some as the originator of
Social Darwinism, although his theories were sharply at odds with some of what is commonly understood by that term. Furthermore, Spencer's major works predated those of
Charles Darwin. Spencer's book
First Principles is an exposition of the evolutionary principles underlying all domains of reality. Spencer, however, did acknowledge Darwin's genius and originality so much that at the scientist's funeral in 1882 at
Westminster Abbey, Spencer considered it so important that he attend, he broke his own rule of never stepping foot inside a church.
In his political writings, such as
The Man Versus the State, Spencer proposed a radical
classical liberal philosophy.
It was Spencer, and
not Darwin who coined the phrase "
survival of the fittest", as well as popularizing the term "evolution." Spencer is also acknowledged as one of the founders of the science of
sociology.
Works
See also
External links
Spencer, Herbert
Spencer, Herbert
Spencer, Herbert
Spencer, Herbert
Spencer, Herbert
de:Herbert Spencer
es:Herbert Spencer
fr:Herbert Spencer
nl:Herbert Spencer
ja:ハーバート・スペンサー
pl:Herbert Spencer
sk:Herbert Spencer
sv:Herbert Spencer