Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

An Effect on Literature and Culture

Theories of Evolution

Tyler CrawleyAdu MalladiAlex NaberDaniel Strevel

Darwin and Darwinism

• Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species was

published in 1859

• His findings led him to the theory of Natural

Selection

• This explains biological and psychological

developments

• His findings were recognized as sinful, but

his theories grew popular over time

The New Way

• Evolutionary thought challenged society’s

outdated belief systems

• Religion, specifically Christianity, was a

primary target

• “Survival of the fittest” started to become

the new way of thinking

Decadence

• If there is no absolute morality, then

indulgence and pleasure are justified.

• Ideas of right and wrong and spirituality

matter less

• Morality is a way of coexisting with others

to promote successful evolution

• Transcending the ego

Degeneration

• Degeneration in life and art

• Artistic and literary protest against

subjective spirituality

• Experimentation in art and in life, including

sciences

• A respect to wit and artifice

Hedonism

• Decadence was the cultural foundation

• Our desires have been responsible for

evolutionary advantages

• The art of the mid and late 19th century

reflect what is now aestheticism

• Decadents thought art should marvel at

virtue and morality, rather than understand

it

Horror

• Horror deals with supernatural happenings which stem from

human sins

• Writer during this movement showed the consequences of

dropping morality

• Utilized primal fears as a source of fright

• “Things that we fear are infinitely variable, but these fears

originate from original instincts, simply amplified by our minds”

(Clasen)

• Churches told, but writers showed

Mystery

• Themes of turn of the century literature

reflect society’s changes

• Satan is no longer the source of evil

• Investigation into the causes of immoral

behavior becomes the basis of mystery

fiction

Arthur Machen

• “The Great God Pan” shows the effects of society’s immorality

• The horrors derive from the exploitation of nature

• Vivisection, industrialization and child labor are examples

• The Hill of Dreams talks of society’s problems through primal horrors

• Lucian is driven to insanity because urbanization and a shift in

society’s values

• Examples of this are materialism, industrialization, and isolationism

M.P. Shiel

• “The S.S.” focuses on mystery, but shares decadent

themes

• Striving towards perfection causes the secret society

to act as the hand of God

• Instead of a priest as a beacon of righteousness, the

detective is.

Fin

• Evolution began the dissolution of the creationistic way of thought

and as a source of objective morality

• Mystery explores the causes of sinful behavior

• Horror illustrates the sinful behavior’s consequences

• Degradation, indulgence, and aestheticism emerge as a result

• We can see through these decadent texts that evolution causes new

ways of understanding life to emerge.

Bibliography

• Clasen, Mathias. "Darwin and Dracula: Evolutionary Literary Study and Supernatural Horror Fiction." Thesis. Aarhus University, n.d. Academia.edu. Academia. Web. 06 Feb. 2014.

• Clasen, Mathias. "Monsters Evolve: A Biocultural Approach to Horror Stories." Review of GeneralPsychology 16.2 (2012): 222-29. Academia.edu. Academis, 22 Feb. 2012. Web. 06 Feb. 2014.

• "A Critical Reading of Dover Beach." Hamilton Institute. Hamilton Institute, 5 Oct. 2008. Web. 06 Feb. 2014.

• "Decadence." Decadence. University of Wisconsin. Web. 06 Feb. 2014.• Diniejko, Andrzej, Dr. "Evolution and the Intellectual Ferment of the Victorian Period." Victorian

Web. Brown University, 11 May 2010. Web. 05 Feb. 2014.• FitzPatrick, William. "Morality and Evolutionary Biology." Stanford University. Stanford

University, 19 Dec. 2008. Web. 06 Feb. 2014.• Landow, G.P. “Victorian Doubt and Victorian Architecture”. 13 October 2007. Web. 05 Feb. 2014• Machen, Arthur. The Great God Pan and The Inmost Light. London: J. Lane, 1894. Print.• Machen, Arthur. The Hill of Dreams. London: E. Grant Richards, 1907. Print.• Shiel, M. P. Prince Zaleski. London: J. Lane, 1894. Print.