• The Synthetic Philosopher

  • A Critical Overview of Herbert Spencer's Life and Work
  • By: J. Arthur Thomson
  • Narrated by: Jack Folley-Barwise
  • Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (4 ratings)

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The Synthetic Philosopher

By: J. Arthur Thomson
Narrated by: Jack Folley-Barwise
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Publisher's summary

This is a delightfully insightful overview of the life and work of Herbert Spencer, the famous evolutionist of the 19th century. Although Spencer's thought is not without controversy, he was nevertheless responsible for a number of important contributions, not the least of which is his coining of the term "survival of the fittest", which Charles Darwin (on the advice of Alfred Russel Wallace) used as a placeholder for his more generalistic term, "natural selection".

©2020 MSAC Philosophy Group (P)2021 David Christopher Lane

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Learn about Spencer

I have read Spencer's Ethics and Sociology. This book emphasizes his Biology and engagement with the ideas of evolution pre and post Darwin. Some personal biography. Very interesting and the voice of Mr. Folley-Barwise impressive. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

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Disappointment

The primary benefit of this book is helping me understand why Spencer’s outsided influence in his day faded quickly and he is hardly known today.

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