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HORACE M. KALLEN'S USE OF EVOLUTIONARY THEORY IN SUPPORT OF AMERICAN JEWS AND DEMOCRACY
Author(s) -
Kaufman Matthew
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
zygon®
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.222
H-Index - 23
eISSN - 1467-9744
pISSN - 0591-2385
DOI - 10.1111/zygo.12364
Subject(s) - democracy , rhetorical question , selection (genetic algorithm) , judaism , natural selection , darwinism , sociology , epistemology , philosophy , political science , law , theology , politics , computer science , linguistics , artificial intelligence
Abstract This article examines the rhetorical deployment of Darwinian natural selection by the Jewish social philosopher Horace M. Kallen (1882–1974), in what is now widely regarded as the first articulation of cultural pluralism, “Democracy versus the Melting‐Pot” (1915). My analysis proceeds in two steps. First, I identify specific strategies by means of which Kallen endeavored to insert his ideas more deeply into national discourse. I also trace reactions to his essay in the Jewish press, and argue that these indicate ongoing conversations concerning Kallen's ideas, and they also reveal how he was reinterpreted for different reading audiences. Second, I argue that Kallen's strategy was to stress the survival value of cooperation rather than competition in natural selection, and he believed that this view supported both the natural biological inclinations of social groups and reflected American democratic values. Kallen's intervention serves as a striking example of how Darwinian natural selection was deployed to support Jewish participation in American life.