Evolution and Revolution Comparative History of Social Change

Ecological-Evolutionary Theory (EET)

Evolution and Revolution: Comparative History of Social Change

In understanding the evolution of human societies in the course of history, it is best traced and determined through the different states of economic development that humanity has experienced. Humanity's evolution from being a hunting and gathering to an industrial society can be pointed to numerous variables that served as catalysts that eventually made the conditions suitable for the nature of societies at present, which are mainly industrialized or heading towards industrialization. Tracing the history of social change is tracing the catalysts that led to the following stages of economic development in human societies over time: from hunting and gathering, to simple horticultural, eventually to advanced horticultural, developing to simple agrarian, then to advanced agrarian, and ultimately, to industrial societies.

This transition from different levels of economic development could have been spurred by population growth, wherein the need more and better sustenance became the motivation for the eventual development of an agrarian and eventually, an industrialized society. Another school of thought that is prevalent is the development of technologies that spurred economic growth through increased food production and even food surplus. However, there is another perspective expressed through the Ecological-Evolutionary Theory or EET, which posits that "a given type of society will generate a specific type of stratification system characterized by a given degree of inequality" (Nielsen, 2003, p. 7). All of these schools of thought contribute to the concept of 'evolution to revolution,' wherein the history of social changes in economic development led to the creation of inequality, and ultimately, inciting revolution as a result of this evolution.

This research proposal shall focus on exploring the evolution of economic development in human society, which also became the catalyst for the development of revolution as humanity headed towards the industrialization stage. Moreover, the proposal will put emphasis on the role that Ecological-Evolutionary Theory or EET plays in understanding this transition from 'evolution to revolution' -- how, at the point of industrialization of human society, it is inevitable to for social conflict through a revolution to occur.