Darwinism in Sovenia

Abstract

The contribution addresses various interpretations of Darwin along with interpretations of the theory of evolution. The Slovenes came into contact with Darwin through various ideological orientations. The Catholic camp regarded Darwinism mostly as a conspiracy devised by the liberals and the M/adoslovenci movement (Young Slovenes) with ""Atila" Vošnjak at the helm, while on the other hand, the latter were aware ofthe traps of the Darwinian theory and its unfortunate derivatives. These led to racial theories, which was of course grist to the mill of the German majority that stuck to Carneri's, Vogt's and Haeckel's derivatives. As early as in the early seventies of the nineteenth century, Janko Sernec emphasised the differentiation between Darwinism and its unfortunate derivatives which provided moral and scientific foundation for the rise of nationalisms in the twentieth century. In the 1930s, V ladimir Bartol set about the making ofa thorough interpretation and a lucid prediction. He considered Darwin to be a continuation of Descartes" mechanistic world; he contrasted it with an individual autonomous soul that is capable of finding its own place under the sun.