Ludwik Żychliński’s remarks on theory of evolution.

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries the reception of the theory of evolution was a popular issue discussed in the scientific community of Poland. The revolutionary Darwin’s theory as well as the great number of misunderstandings and controversies growing up around it have contributed to increase of scientist’s interest in this subject. Ludwik Żychliński who was not a professional philosopher but was interested in issues connected with theory of evolution took part in the debate. In my paper I present Żychliński’s critical remarks concerning the German philosophers’ (E.Heackel and his followers) outlooks. These remarks reveal that the materialistic interpretation of the theory of evolution is not justified. A particular emphasis was placed on the fact of the abuse of Darwin’s theory for defending a materialistic outlook.

Keywords:
Evolutionary theory, monism, materialism, organic life, Charles Darwin, Ernst Haeckel, Ludwik Żychliński,