Atheism and Polygenesis in the Nineteenth Century
Charles Bradlaugh's Racial Anthropology
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21160178 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Nathan G Alexander (0000-0002-4427-6880, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 835-861 |
| Publication date | 2019-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Modern Intellectual History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1479-2443 • E-ISSN: 1479-2451 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s1479244317000622 |
| OpenAlex | W2783396363 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 26 |
This article examines a previously unexplored chapter in the history of atheism: its close links with nineteenth-century racial anthropology. These links are apparent especially in many atheists’ interest in polygenesis, the theory that human races had separate origins, in contrast to the orthodox Christian doctrine of monogenesis that said all races descended from Adam and Eve. The article's focus is Charles Bradlaugh (1833–91), arguably the most important British atheist of the era, representing the radical working-class, secularist movement that emerged in mid-nineteenth-century Britain. The article charts the ways Bradlaugh and other atheists used the research on polygenesis from leading scientific racists in both Britain and the United States to critique Christianity. It also explores some of the contradictions of this use, namely the ways polygenesis clashed with Darwinism and a longer chronology of the age of the Earth. Finally, the article explores how polygenist ideas informed Bradlaugh's imperial worldview and notes that, despite his acceptance of polygenesis, Bradlaugh was a supporter of the rights of nonwhites in the British Empire, particularly in India
Ancient history · Atheism · Christianity · Darwinism · Doctrine · Empire · Epistemology · Genealogy · Racism · Sociology · Supporter · Theology · Anthropology · Gender Studies · Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes · History · Philosophy · Race, Genetics, and Society · Religious studies
The leopard's spots
A Sketch of the Life and Writings of Robert Knox, the Anatomist
The Territories of Science and Religion
The Origin of Man
Race, culture, and evolution
Victorian Anthropology
A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom
Josiah Nott of Mobile
Religion, polygenism and the early science of human origins
The Forging of Races
Village Atheists
The President's Address
The President's Address
A People of One Book
Anniversary Address, Delivered before the Anthropological Society of London, January 19th, 1869
Josiah Nott of Mobile
Adam's Ancestors
The Forging of Races
Introductory Address on the Study of Anthropology
The Making of British Anthropology, 1813–1871
The Making of British Anthropology, 1837-1871
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |