The Survival Power of Compassion

Herbert Spencer, not Charles Darwin, coined “survival of the fittest.” Spencer used it to justify laissez-faire capitalism, arguing that helping the vulnerable outside one’s own family was against self-interest and weakened evolution.

Darwin didn’t use the phrase until the 5th edition of “On the Origin of Species”—and even then, he used it to describe what best fits its environment.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Spencer’s ideas morphed into Social Darwinism. Philosopher Daniel Dennett called it “an odious misapplication of Darwinian thinking in defense of political doctrines that range from callous to heinous.”

But Darwin himself emphasized something entirely different: the importance of social instincts, cooperation, and empathy in human evolution. As he wrote in The Descent of Man:
“...for those communities, which included the greatest number of sympathetic members, would flourish best, and rear the greatest number of offspring.”

How different would the world be if we had embraced Darwin’s vision of compassion instead of the distortion in his name?

If ever there were a time to turn this around, it’s now. Here are three simple yet powerful ways to shift the narrative and build a better future:
• Read original sources – Truth builds trust.
• Do what lights you up – Passion fuels contribution.
• Build community – Because that’s how we flourish best.

Darwin reminded us that compassion within societies isn’t weakness, it’s survival at its strongest.

This is one of my Big Ideas posts—where I explore how new ideas, good science, creativity, and bold leadership can help us build a better world.

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