C is incorrect because the passage does not tell us how other Social Darwinists stand. We know that Gilman believes that the theoretical debate has important practical implications, but we are not provided with any information on the views of other Social Darwinists.
D is correct because it is supported by lines 23 to 56. Gilman held that "it is possible for us to contribute consciously to the evolutionary process" and that "since a prime source of social evolution is human work...one of the primary ethical responsibilities of a person is to identify and engage in work that is societally relevant and that makes the best use of that person's talents." The final paragraph of the passage tells us that Gilman "urges women to further social evolution by collectively working toward a reorganization of society," a central goal of which "would be the abandonment of gender-specific work roles and hierarchical relationships."
Hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any further questions.
tomgbeanon December 30, 2019
Hi victoria,
C is tempting because we are, in fact, given the views of other social darwinists:
"Some of these
(10)Social Darwinist theorists held that the nature of
.human social interactions is strictly determined by the
.process of biological evolution, and that it is futile to
.try to meddle with the competitive struggle for
.existence and the survival of the fittest. Another, more
(15)activist group of Social Darwinists held that although
.changes in human societies, like those that occur in
.biological species, do constitute a sort of evolution,
.this evolution at the level of a human society need not
.be competitive, but can emerge through collective
(20)action within society."
How do you discount the information above?
mfujiion May 1, 2020
C: Unlike most Social Darwinists of her time, Gilman saw the issues involved in Social Darwinist debate as transcending abstract theoretical concerns and having important implications for human society, especially for women.
I'm guessing the "unlike MOST" part of answer C makes the section you cited irrelevant. We have information about what some social darwinists think, but not about what most think.
Victoriaon July 30, 2020
Hi @tomgbean and @mfujii,
Sorry for the confusion! What I meant by not being given information on the views of other Social Darwinists was that we do not know whether others believe that the issues transcend abstract theoretical concerns and have important implications for human society.
We know that one group believes that human social interactions are pre-determined by biological evolution and that the other group believes that evolution can emerge through collective action within society. Both of these views have important implications for human society; however, we do not know whether other Social Darwinists would agree with this.
@mfujii, you are also right! We have general information about what two groups of Social Darwinists believe but there is no information provided to tell us how popular these views are within the field of Social Darwinism as a whole.
Hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any further questions.
