Internet Exercises

Exercise 1

Collins and Makowsky point out that Herbert Spencer saw two main types of societies: the militant society, in which the regulative system dominates the sustaining system; and the industrial society, in which the state exists for the benefit of its members and not vice versa (see p. 83).

Go to http://socserv2.socsci.mcmaster.ca/~econ/ugcm/3ll3/spencer/manvssta and scroll all the way to the end of Spencer’s “Man versus the State” until you reach the section entitled “Postscript.” Read this postscript and then answer the following questions:

1. What are Spencer’s views on the relationship between theory and practice? How does this relationship manifest itself in militant societies?



2. What does Spencer mean when he talks about the doctrine of limitation? Does he think that the society in which he was living could fully realize this doctrine? Why or why not?



3. Explain how the concept of the “survival of the fittest” functions in militant societies.



4. How does Spencer describe the work of philanthropists in this selection?

Exercise 2

Collins and Makowsky point out that “the great idea of the late nineteenth century belongs to the evolutionists: the insight into humankind’s continuity with the animal world. This insight gave enormous impetus to scientific efforts to solve social problems” (p. 87).

Go to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/carnegie/peopleevents/pande03.html. Here there is a summary of a PBS “American Experience” program about Andrew Carnegie. Click on “Program Transcript” and read the transcript. You will find that there is a section in which Spencer’s influence on Carnegie is discussed. After reading this section, answer the following questions:

1. Why did Carnegie support Spencer’s notion of the survival of the fittest?



2. How did Carnegie feel about the state intervening in economic affairs—e.g. regulating an 8-hour workday?



3. Did Carnegie follow Spencer’s beliefs about the role of philanthropy in society?



4. When Spencer traveled to Pittsburgh to visit Carnegie, how did he react to the city itself?