ERIC Number: EJ1369223
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0046-760X
EISSN: EISSN-1464-5130
Classical Education and Darwinism: Tadeusz Zielinski's Attempt at Reconciliation
History of Education, v51 n5 p611-630 2022
Written by a Polish-Russian scholar Tadeusz Zielinski, "Our Debt to Antiquity" (1903) was a successful attempt to combat the prejudiced view that classical education resists progress. Zielinski argued that Darwinian laws manifest themselves in his discipline in three aspects: (1) in the emergence of Greek and Latin languages as a result of the selection of word-forms and expressions that testify to certain features of national character; (2) in the persistence of classical education across many centuries as the 'fittest' educational system; (3) in the selection of schoolchildren for national elites. Although Zielinski's application of Darwinian laws of selection to human society may appear reactionary to a modern reader, this article argues that in doing so he defends classical education both from the left-wing populists and from attempts at abuse from the right. Moreover, his thoughts prompt modern scholars to reflect on the real presence of Social Darwinism in our present educational system.
Descriptors: Educational History, Classical Languages, Greek, Latin, Publications, Elementary Secondary Education, Social Status, Advantaged, Scientific Principles, Political Attitudes, Educational Philosophy, Humanities, Evolution, Social Change, Violence, Social Action, Social Systems, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Russia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A