An examination of the changing concepts of evolution, development & progress since 1920. In that yr, J. B. Bury wrote his IDEA OF PROGRESS, which ended an historical account of this idea as an outgrowth of rationalism with the warning that the notion of progress could be turned against itself. The terms evolution, development & progress are examined. Evolution has been defined by biologists as a theory of the origin of species & as a movement from lower to higher forms of life; development, as ontogeny or the emergence of the adult organism out of the germ. Unlike evolution & development, progress cannot be defined in ethically neutral terms. As formulated in the 18th cent, the theory of progress implied a belief in human perfectibility, in the unity of mankind & in a movement towards breaking the barriers between men. The notion of evolution is now criticized, & anthrop'ts talk about 'the downfall of evolutionism'; but this criticism is largely misdirected. The concept of development was redefined in ethical terms in the 192questionaires by L. T. Hobhouse. 2 movements, Marxism & a redefinition of evolutionism to avoid its errors (J. Huxley & J. Needham) have reasserted the idea of progress. It is concluded that: (1) no laws of development or progress have so far been established; (2) important major trends can be discerned (growth of command over natural forces through knowledge; development of morals through clarification of ideals; fuller insights into human needs; tendencies towards universalism & human unity); (3) these various developments have been uneven & unbalanced; & (4) the difficulties & the failures must not blind us to the successes & the possibilities that remain open. I. Langnas.
