The Myth of Progress

See worsley: Pseudo-progress
Some 20th-century authors refer to the "Myth of Progress" to challenge the Idea of Progress, especially the assumption that the human condition will inevitably improve. In 1932, English physician Montague David Eder wrote: "The myth of progress states that civilization has moved, is moving, and will move in a desirable direction. Progress is inevitable... Philosophers, men of science and politicians have accepted the idea of the inevitability of progress."[39]
 Philosopher Karl Popper emphasized the inadequacies of the Idea of Progress as a scientific explanation of social phenomena.[41] More recently, Kirkpatrick Sale, a self-proclaimed neo-luddite author, wrote exclusively about progress as a myth, in an essay entitled "Five Facets of a Myth".[42]
See also: Appeal to novelty (logical fallacy); Meliorism; Modernization theory; Philosophical progress; Progress (history); Progressivism; Scientific progress; Social progress; Whig history
Category:Concept
Category:Myths