Is the theory "survival of the fittest" more of a proverb than a theory..?

Question

To me, survival of the fittest is more of a proverb. Its not just for animals, it can also be applied to humans as well- e.g. humans that have the more luxurious life will have a better chance of surviving than those who sleep on the streets

Answer 1

It is not a Theory it is a fact of life- humans are animals, and you are here because your ancestors were more fit , and survived the ravages of prehistoric savagesand life in the middleages, the plague, child hood disease, starvation and so on- The fittest is not necessarily the Richest but more likely he, who can survive on the Least and defend what he has- If ever we have Conscription into the Military again, you will see that Wealth has nothing to do with Survival on the Battle field.

Answer 2

Survival of the fittest is both a theory and a proverb. However, I think there are different types of "fittest". For example, you mention that humans that have a more luxurious life will have a better chance of survival than someone who sleeps on the streets. Would you apply the same principle to a horse? That a rich horse living in wealthy stable who is given food everyday, or a horse running around on the open plains of Nebraska?

I don't think money itself, the nature of your home, what posessions you have influences your life. However, money is a tool to provide you with medical care, perhaps healthy food, and a "better standard of life".

However, as well all know celebrities seem to have the hardest time staying on the straight and narrow. Maybe money doesn't lead to survival at all.

Through all these years though, humans are truly the only animals that care for other creatures to an extent to keep them as pets. Humans have changed the idea of "the survival of the fittest" by applying general care and concern to ensure survival. That's what makes us great.

The victor will not be the one that eats the other animal. The victor is the one the other animals follow.

Answer 3

"survival of the fittest" is more of a proverb but it is very similar to the theory form of "natural selection". These to concepts have basically the same meaning. They are being applied to humans still just to a lesser degree with more advanced technology like heart surgery and other advances in medicine. But it still affected by colds and other disease that could possibly kill you

I'm an American so I don't have the survival of the fittest where the weak starve and strong eat. In other countries though they do fight over that and people do starve and they don't have advanced medical procedures.

"Survival of the fittest" will always affect every living thing because we are all competing with each other to survive and if it comes down to it the strong will survive.

Answer 4

Well no, it's not a proverb or a theory. It's a fact about nature. Most obvious in animals but also works in humans. It may seem sad or simplistic to reduce our lives to such a term but it holds true. Life is about survival. If you are healthy & strong you survive. If you are unhealthy & weak, you are more likely to die sooner. All animals & people have a choice: to survive or to succumb. Some people find out they have a possibly terminal disease and they fight it. They exercise, eat healthy, research, think positive & do whatever it takes to beat the illness. They end up overcoming it & going into remission. It seems like a miraculous recovery, but it was actually their own doing. Others are crushed by the news & give up. They succumb to the illness. We can succumb to many things: addictions of any kind (from drugs to alcohol to food) that make us unhealthy & can kill us, depression and suicide, various illnesses and health problems, a life of crime and/or poverty, negative thinking and self-loathing etc.

Some situations we are born into and can't do much about. We don't all start with the same hand. Some are better off than others. But we choose how to play the hand that we're dealt. We choose how hard we try to be the best that we can be in a ruthless, competitive world. Two people may start off in the gutter, one may stay there & the other may reach for the stars. If we choose to survive, we become strong, positive & capable of making it in the world. If we just give up, we can never really make it in the world.

Answer 5

Survival of the fittest isn't something that Darwin ever stated. It came actually from a right-wing philosopher Herbert Spencer who compared the theory of evolution to capitalism. It is not an accurate description of Darwin's theory either, because more often than not, the species which survives is not the "fittest" but merely the "luckiest".

Answer 6

Depends on how you define "fittest." In the human hierarchy, we have artificial means of keeping people alive in a physical sense. However, as the Darwin awards have shown, those who are mentally inept tend to do themselves and society a service by, ah, removing themselves. Why do we strive for intelligence? It's to survive, not just in a monetary sense, but to satisfy some natural drive for knowledge, a lust never satiated. If that drive is gone, why live? The fit survive because if intellect dies, so do we all.

Answer 7

Well if you studied Biology I would shame you for not understand what that phrase actually means. The man on the street per say could have just a likelihood of passing his genetic information on to the next generation as the luxurious. The luxurious are just as likely to be unfertile as any other person, along with many of the drug-related problems associated with either group. Anyway, I could argue for or against this subject. Sure the more wealthy individual may have more opportunities to pass on his / her genetic information, but that lies up to the individual. Nearly anyone willing enough, and who is fertile, can manage to pass on their genetic information. Nevertheless, I would say the more opportunities should suggest the more likelihood of survival.

Answer 8

i don't think survival of the fittest applies in today's world in the same way t did long ago. I don't think the fittest is going to be a physical fit, but rather a mental/intelectual fit. Whether it be on the streets or in high society, the more cunning will provail.

Answer 9

Only when dealing in human terms is that phrase an analogy.

In nature survival of the fittest is how creatures compete to survive so it is not a theory, it's a way of life...or death

Answer 10

properly, maximum atheists will settle for mathematical proofs as properly, as any functional man or woman might. it is not fairly the comparable factor as scientific evidence. In arithmetic, ideas could be shown; in technological know-how, in assessment, any hypotheses must be testable (and subsequently undertaking to disproof, if the evidence exhibits that such hypotheses are incorrect). different than those 2 procedures, i understand of no solid reason to settle for a proposition. If the president, or the pope, or whomever, tells me that the moon is made out of snow, case in point, i'm nevertheless going to decide for to examine the evidence that helps this declare. Arguments from authority (which incorporates historical texts, often stated as "holy books") are thoroughly non-persuasive to me.