A Theory of Philosophy of History, Social Change and Cultural Evolution

Marx, Durkheim and White produced linear theories of history, social change and cultural evolution but their theories have a common deficiency. None of them provide an ultimate explanation for social, cultural and historical change. This failure was rectified by J. S. Mill who suggested increasing human knowledge was the ultimate cause of social, cultural and historical change. However even Mill did not ask what caused the increasing human knowledge and why the knowledge had to be acquired in a particular order and how this could affect human history. Attempts to understand and observe a pattern in the broad sweep of history are usually known as substantive or speculative theories of history or as macro-histories. A considerable number of such theories of history, social change and cultural evolution have been proposed by various philosophers, historians, sociologists and anthropologists. Twenty such theories are offered in Macrohistory and Macrohistorians 60 (ed) by Johan Galtung and Sohail Inayatullah and thirteen in Part I of Theories of History 61 (ed) by Patrick Gardiner and more are offered in Philosophies of History 62 by Rolf Grunger and Philosophy of History 63 by Alan and Barbara Donagen. Not all deal with the same subject matter, as some tend to deal with the rise and fall of civilizations, empires, cultures and religions. Others tend to deal with economic, technological or scientific changes in history. Such theories of history, social change and cultural evolution usually attempt to discern a pattern or meaning to history. Sometimes a linear pattern showing history as moving towards a particular end or result is proposed. A cyclical pattern is sometimes proposed involving history in some way periodically repeating itself. Sometimes a mixture of the two is proposed involving repetition in history accompanied by progress towards some end. Speculative theories of history, social change and cultural evolution often involve a mechanism or an explanation as to how change takes place in history. They may also propose a purpose or justification of history. This paper will examine six speculative theories of history, social change and cultural evolution all of which propose a linear pattern to history, and will point out a deficiency common to five of them. This deficiency is the lack of an ultimate driving force for historical change, a deficiency which is meet by the idea that increasing human knowledge is the ultimate driving force for history. This view is stated by Mill in the fourth philosophy of history examined in this paper, but he does not say what causes the increasing human knowledge and why it comes to us in a particular order.