Race and Human Development

Paper Summary:

This paper addresses the issue of race and its effect on human intelligence and development. It presents the position of Jared Diamond, the author of " Guns, Germs, And Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" who argues against the notion that race plays a role in human development and intelligence and then presents the position stated in "The Bell Curve". This book, by Richard J. Herrnstein and Charles Murray, assumes an exact opposite position and asserts that whites are inherently more intelligent than blacks and that intelligence is genetically inherited and basically fixed.

From the Paper:

"So does race play a part in intelligence and human development? Diamond feels that the answer to that question is absolutely not. His theory is that history followed different paths for different races not because of biological factors, but due to social environments. Many historians and scientists feel that Diamond's explanation is wrong and over simplifies the real issues of race, human development and intelligence. But Diamond feels that many historians and scientists, by seeming to be objective and impartial, legitimized racial theories in the eyes of many Americans who were otherwise prone to believe in the equality of all human beings."

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