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La nature de l'entraide

La nature de l'entraide

Pierre Kropotkine et les fondements biologiques de l'anarchisme


La croisée des chemins



The biological basis of anarchism in Peter Kropotkin's thought

At the end of the nineteenth century, social-darwinism tried to apply the darwinian's natural selection model to society, taking for granted that competition and survival of the fittest were the principles of evolution. Capitalism, and also racism and colonialism found in it one of their strongest ideological justifications. The Russian scientist and anarchist Peter Kropotkin (1842-1921) was one of the most dedicated opponents to this discourse, entering the field of darwinism in order to show that mutual aid was as much a factor in evolution as competition, if not a more important factor.
This book analyses the genesis, unfolding and aftermath of this intellectual fight, which Kropotkin waged during thirty years, adding to his re-reading of Darwin's work the study of Lamarck's analysis over the interactions between organism and environment. Taking into account the epistemological difficulties of his thought, the study of the biological basis of Kropotkin's anarchism leads us to stand against every discourse that would try to back social injustice on account of so-called immutable features of human nature.