It is difficult to say when the question of the appearance and formation of man first arose. This problem was of interest to both the thinkers of ancient civilizations and our contemporaries. How is society developing? Is it possible to single out certain criteria and stages of this process?
Society as a single system
Every living being on the planet is a separate organism, which has certain stages of development, such as birth, growth and death. However, no one exists in isolation. Many organisms tend to unite in groups, within which they interact and influence each other.
Man is no exception. Uniting on the basis of common qualities, interests and occupations, people form a society. Within it, certain traditions, rules, foundations are formed. Often all elements of society are interconnected and interdependent. Thus, it develops as a whole.
Social evolution implies a leap, the transition of society to a qualitatively different level. Changes in an individual's behavior and values are transmittedthe rest and are transferred to the entire society in the form of norms. Thus, people moved from herds to states, from gathering to technological progress, etc.
Social evolution: first theories
The essence and patterns of social evolution have always been interpreted differently. Back in the 14th century, the philosopher Ibn Khaldun was of the opinion that society develops exactly like an individual. First, it is born, followed by dynamic growth, flourishing. Then comes decline and death.
In the era of enlightenment, one of the main theories was the principle of the "stage history" of society. Scottish thinkers have expressed the opinion that society is rising along four steps of progress:
- gathering and hunting,
- cattle breeding and nomadism,
- farming and agriculture,
- trade.
In the 19th century, the first concepts of evolution appeared in Europe. The term itself is Latin for "deployment". He presents the theory of the gradual development of complex and diverse life forms from a single-celled organism through genetic mutations in its descendants.
The idea of becoming complex from the simplest was picked up by sociologists and philosophers, considering this idea relevant for the development of society. For example, anthropologist Lewis Morgan distinguished three stages of ancient people: savagery, barbarism and civilization.
Social evolution is perceived as a continuation of the biological formation of species. It is the next stage after the emergence of Homo sapiens. So, Lester Ward perceived it as a natural step in the development of our world aftercosmogenesis and biogenesis.
Man as a product of biological and social evolution
Evolution has caused the emergence of all species and populations of living beings on the planet. But why did people advance so much further than others? The fact is that in parallel with physiological changes, social factors of evolution also acted.
The first steps towards socialization were made not even by a man, but by an anthropoid ape, taking tools in his hands. Skills gradually improved, and already two million years ago a skilled person appeared who actively uses tools in his life.
However, the theory of such a significant role of labor is not supported by modern science. This factor acted in combination with others, such as thinking, speech, uniting in a herd, and then in communities. A million years later, Homo erectus appears - the forerunner of Homo sapiens. He not only uses, but also makes tools, kindles a fire, cooks food, uses primitive speech.
The role of society and culture in evolution
Even a million years ago, the biological and social evolution of man occurs in parallel. However, already 40 thousand years ago, biological changes are slowing down. Cro-Magnons practically do not differ from us in appearance. Since their emergence, the social factors of human evolution have played an important role.
According to one of the theories, there are three main stages of social progress. The first is characterized by the appearance of art in the formrock drawings. The next step is the domestication and breeding of animals, as well as farming and beekeeping. The third stage is the period of technical and scientific progress. It begins in the 15th century and continues to this day.
With each new period, a person increases his control and influence on the environment. The fundamental principles of evolution according to Darwin, in turn, are relegated to the background. So, for example, natural selection, which plays an important role in "weeding out" weak individuals, is no longer so influential. Thanks to medicine and other advances, a weak person can continue to live in modern society.
Classical developmental theories
Simultaneously with the works of Lamarck and Darwin on the origin of life, theories of evolutionism appear. Inspired by the idea of constant improvement and progress of life forms, European thinkers believe that there is a single formula according to which human social evolution takes place.
One of the first hypotheses was put forward by Auguste Comte. He distinguishes theological (primitive, initial), metaphysical and positive (scientific, highest) stages of development of the mind and worldview.
Spenser, Durkheim, Ward, Morgan and Tennis were also supporters of the classical theory. Their views differ, but there are some common provisions that formed the basis of the theory:
- humanity is presented as a single whole, and its changes are natural and necessary;
- social evolution of society occurs only from primitive to more developed, and its stages are not repeated;
- all cultures develop along a universal line, the stages of which are the same for everyone;
- primitive peoples are at the next stage of evolution, they can be used to study primitive society.
Rejection of classical theories
Romantic beliefs about the sustainable improvement of society leave at the beginning of the 20th century. World crises and wars force scientists to take a different look at what is happening. The idea of further progress is perceived with skepticism. The history of mankind is no longer linear, but cyclical.
Echoes of Ibn Khaldun's philosophy about repetitive stages in the life of civilizations appear in the ideas of Oswald Spengler, Arnold Toynbee. As a rule, there were four of them:
- birth,
- rise,
- maturity,
- death.
Thus, Spengler believed that about 1000 years pass from the moment of birth to the extinction of a culture. Lev Gumilyov gave them 1200 years. Western civilization was considered close to natural decline. Franz Boas, Margaret Mead, Pitirim Sorokin, Vilfredo Pareto, etc. were also adherents of the "pessimistic" school.
Neoevolutionism
Man as a product of social evolution appears again in the philosophy of the second half of the 20th century. Using scientific data and evidence from anthropology, history, ethnography, Leslie White and Julian Steward develop a theoryneoevolutionism.
The new idea is a synthesis of the classical linear, universal and multilinear models. In their concept, scientists refuse the term "progress". It is believed that culture does not make a sharp leap in development, but only becomes somewhat more complicated compared to the previous form, the process of change occurs more smoothly.
The founder of the theory, Leslie White, assigns the main role in social evolution to culture, presenting it as the main tool for human adaptation to the environment. He puts forward an energy concept, according to which, with the development of culture, the number of energy sources develops. Thus, he speaks of three stages in the formation of society: agrarian, fuel and thermonuclear.
Post-industrial and informational theories
Simultaneously with other concepts at the beginning of the 20th century, the idea of a post-industrial society arises. The main provisions of the theory are visible in the works of Bell, Toffler and Brzezinski. Daniel Bell identifies three stages in the formation of cultures, which correspond to a certain level of development and production (see table).
| Stage | Production and technology industry | Leading forms of social organization |
| Pre-industrial (agrarian) | Agriculture | Church and Army |
| Industrial | Industry | Corporations |
| Post-industrial | Services | Universities |
The post-industrial stage refers to the entire 19th century and the second half of the 20th. According to Bell, its main features are the improvement of the quality of life, the reduction of population growth and the birth rate. The role of knowledge and science is increasing. The economy is focused on the production of services and human-to-human interaction.
As a continuation of this theory, the concept of the information society appears, which is part of the post-industrial era. The "infosphere" is often singled out as a separate economic sector, displacing even the service sector.
The information society is characterized by an increase in information specialists, the active use of radio, television and other media. Possible consequences include the development of a common information space, the emergence of e-democracy, the government and the state, the complete disappearance of poverty and unemployment.
Conclusion
Social evolution is the process of transformation and restructuring of society, during which it qualitatively changes and differs from the previous form. There is no general formula for this process. As in all such cases, the opinions of thinkers and scientists differ.
Each theory has its own characteristics and differences, but you can see that they all have three main vectors:
- the history of human cultures is cyclical, they passseveral stages: from birth to death;
- humanity evolves from the simplest forms to more perfect, constantly improving;
- development of society is the result of adaptation to the external environment, it changes due to the change of resources and does not necessarily surpass previous forms in everything.
