Hey you guys this is my research paper! Sorry about the weird way it pasted ill try to fix it later!
Darwinism and Feminism In the World Today
Most of today’s society honestly does not know how much Darwin and his
evolutionist views of women have created many feministic views in the world. Often in
today’s society these subjects are not even recognized as having a connection. Feminine
inferiority is never talked about as a real product of evolutionary belief. In the media a
person will see wives or girlfriends reacting to this by degrading men or taking over leadership in the home. A study of Darwin’s beliefs and theories about
women reveal that in every aspect his conclusions are degrading, and Biblically unsound.
There are many overall facts about Darwin’s life that contributed to his view of
women. Restricting women’s education was a strong belief among the men in the
Darwin-Wedgewood family (Desmond 252). Growing up, he, his mother, and siblings
were Unitarians (Desmond 261). The existence of hell, or a person possessing a soul was
not something he believed at all. Yet, he did believe in the existence of God (Desmond
271). Darwin’s view on religious matters were shaped by blaming God for his mothers
death when he was young, and his daughters death when she was ten years old (Bergman
8). On January 29th, 1839 he married his first cousin, Emma Wedgewood. Darwin’s wife
was raised in an Anglican background which was the opposite of his beliefs (Desmond
256). Emma seemed to be a Christian and believed in the literal creation account. Emma
found her strength and comfort in God and the Scriptures when her closest sister died.
Emma appealed to Darwin in a letter asking him to read chapters thirteen through twenty-
one in the book of John, because she felt that her religion did not really matter to him
(Desmond 270). Later on, because of his strenuous studies, Darwin often became sick
and Emma was left to care for him. She committed to love Charles by ministering to his
daily needs, and praying for him. Emma served him for the rest of his life loving him yet
they never ultimately came to an agreement on the reality of eternal life (Desmond 361).
Darwin did not respect Gods sovereignty, or His Word. These views contributed his low
opinion of women.
Many of Darwin’s statements reveal his attitudes toward women. Darwin believed
the physical and mental abilities of men were more competent than women (Darwin 306).
He reasoned this because he observed that the female brain was smaller than the male
brain (Bergman 4). Darwin believed that the size of the brain depended on the size of the
body. Since males generally are larger than women, the male’s brain therefore, would
have stronger mental capacities (Bergman 4). Darwin viewed wives incapable of being an
intellectual partner. Keeping him company when there was no other work to do or
providing him pleasure was her role (Bergman 2). Before Darwin married, he made a
statement saying, that he would not enjoy being married because then he would be
obligated to go walking with his wife, which he saw as a waste of time since it would
distract him from other important matters. Darwin believed that having a wife was to
possess something a little better than a dog (Desmond 257). A woman’s purpose to
Darwin was to subordinate to men from the premise of their inferiority.
The Bible has an entirely different view of women! In the Bible, “Christ is the
head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ”
(1 Corinthians 11:3). The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ serves as a paradigm for giving
women dignity and honor, demonstrating subordination from that platform. For example,
Christ came to earth, became a man and was willing to submit to his heavenly Father in
order to redeem mankind (MacArthur 253). Even when Christ came to earth in the form
of a man, He was equal in nature to His Father before, during, and after he came to earth
(MacArthur 254). Since men are not above women, submission serves to compliment the
man. Maturity, spirituality, and intelligence are sometimes greater in women than men.
Submission is exercised from honor and dignity rather than from Darwin’s compromising
view. A woman submitting from an attitude of inferiority results in her being obsequious.
Authority and submission are necessary functions ordained by God in any successful
relationship (MacArthur 253). In I Peter 3:1, 7 the Bible declares that women are not
inferior. In Genesis 1:27 it states men and women are equal. Galatians 3:28 says a
women’s help is needed in every sense to her husband. Men do need the advice that
wives can give them, and the power of submission is the strongest way of showing her
love (DeMoss 147). The Bible proves the truth that women have honor and dignity even
in subordinate positions. When Darwin purports that the wife is inferior to the husband
and that she is not to provide input, or that her opinion is unimportant, he is showing that
his opinion is error compared to what the Bible teaches.
Research shows that Darwin’s beliefs were unbiblical, and that he had a negative
mentality on how women should be treated. Some feministic characteristics in today’s
world are a reaction to unbiblical thinking that was brought out in Darwin’s beliefs.
Darwin lacks Biblical standards toward women and has shown in every aspect that his
ideas were degrading. Many outcomes of his beliefs caused women not only to be treated
unjustly in the past, but also in the present, and will affect them in the future.
