Question

How did naturalism challenge the idea of social darwinism

Answer 1

Naturalism, for better or worse, is in some respects a form of Social Darwinism played out in fiction. One could make the case that Naturalism is merely a specialized variety of Realism. The willingness to appropriate evolution, and the motivations behind it, has changed little in the last hundred years. Darwinism continues to attract an enthusiastic bevy of supporters who see the work of natural selection in every part of the Universe, from physics to psychology, and from genes to human culture.

Answer 2

Naturalism, for better or worse, is in some respects a form of Social Darwinism played out in fiction. One could make the case that Naturalism is merely a specialized variety of Realism.