The Retreat of Scientific Racism: Changing Concepts of Race in Britain and the United States between the World Wars [Paperback]

Elazar Barkan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 24, 1993

This fascinating study in the sociology of knowledge documents the refutation of scientific foundations for racism in Britain and the United States between the two world wars, when the definition of race as a biological concept was replaced by a cultural notion of race. Discussing the work of the leading biologists and anthropologists who wrote about race between the wars, Dr. Barkan argues that the impetus for the shift in ideologies of race came from the inclusion of outsiders--women, Jews, and leftists--into the mainstream of scientific discourse.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In this book Barkan details the changing views of race among scientists in Britain and the United States during the 1920s and 1930s. This period was especially chaotic as the fledgling science of anthropology struggled to find a theoretical framework, and biology moved towards combining Darwin and Mendel's theories into the New Synthesis. Against this backdrop Barkan painstakingly documents the intellectual stances taken by leading scientists, arguing that the move away from racism was prompted as much by political and social factors as by new scientific understanding. An excellent addition to any history of science or social science collection, this is also worth considering for general collections, as racism continues to be a topic of significant interest.
- Eric Hinsdale, Simmons Coll. Graduate Sch. of Management Lib., Boston
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Barkan's study provides an important insight into the political sources of racism and antiracism..." Canadian Journal of History

"Barkan painstakingly documents the intellectual stances taken by leading scientists, arguing that the move away from racism was prompted as much by political and social factors as by new scientific understanding. An excellent addition to any history of science or social science collection." Library Journal

"Elazar Barkan's nuanced treatment of American and British anthropologists and biologists during the period between the world wars is an authoritative and significant contribution to the history of racial thought of the two major English-speaking countries." American Historical Review

"Grounded in extensive research in published and archival sources in several disciplines on both sides of the Atlantic, Barkan's book offers much previously little-known information on a topic of fundamental importance....a worthwhile contribution." George W. Stocking, Jr., Quarterly Review of Biology

"...Barkan easily and persuasively shows the central role played by ideology in eliminating a biological conception of race, even as racist ideas persisted among a few leading biologists in both countries whose ideology never shifted." Carl N. Degler, Journal of American History

"The Retreat of Scientific Racism is exciting reading, bringing to life the personalities of individuals who played a role in the revision of public attitudes toward race during the first half of the twentieth century....Barkan has offered a good criticism of claims of scientific objectivity and lack of bias in scientific study." Nancy Sonleitner, Social Science Quarterly

"In short, Barkan tells a story that is informed by theoretical sophistication and distinguished by both breadth of coverage and richness of incident." Henrika Kuklick, Journal of Interdisciplinary History

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 396 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (September 24, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521458757
• ISBN-13: 978-0521458757
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,112,132 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Retreat of Scientific Racism - Elazar Barkan, May 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Retreat of Scientific Racism: Changing Concepts of Race in Britain and the United States between the World Wars (Paperback)

Elazar Barkan's book The Retreat of Scientific Racism builds on Daniel Kevles' In The Name of Eugenics. While Kevles focuses on eugenics / genetics, Barkan takes a broader approach, looking at developments in eugenics / genetics, biology and physical anthropology, tracing the interactions and developments which led to the removal of the concept of race from the field of science. While Kevles' book remains the standard introduction to Anglo-American eugenics, Barkan's is essential for anybody looking at the topic of race and science in the first half of the century. Whilst acknowledging the causes of shifts in science outlined by Kevles and others such as Garland Allen and Diane Paul, Barkan suggests that it was the inclusion of `outsiders' which ultimately drove those changes. These `outsiders' included women (such as Margaret Mead), socialists (such as J B S Haldane) and Jews (such as Otto Klineberg). The Retreat of Scientific Racism offers excellent lists of primary source material from archives, books and journals of the period. One of the book's greatest strengths is the clear lay out and structure of the book. For example, those people who are central to changes in the field of race and science each have a short section devoted to them giving an overview of the person's life, work, relationships, motivations and intellectual development. The figures covered in this way range from those who are well known today such as Julian Huxley, Franz Boas and Bronislaw Malinowski to the less well known but equally important like Ales Hrdlicka and Herbert Spencer Jennings. (Barkan excludes from his cast of central figures some obvious ones such as Nobel Prize winners T H Morgan and Hermann J Muller and influential non-scientists such as Madison Grant). These portraits are neatly woven into the strong narrative of the book. Students and researchers can `dip' in and out of the book easily to get the information they need on various figures and events. The Retreat of Scientific Racism, whilst being an excellent resource for the specialist, also provides an extremely good introduction to the field of race, science and eugenics.