ABSTRACT
The problem of social progress has engaged the attention of many thoughtful men. Some have given interpretations based on conceptions of the development which can be traced or inferred from the past, and have assumed that the future is merely the amplified present. Others, believing culture development definitely limited in possibilities, have assumed that what has been shall be again, for “there is no new thing under the sun.” Still others, such as the idealistic Plato and his disciples, have drawn plans for the future, in the assurance that if man discovers the path of progress and is willing to follow it, he can achieve a culture better than any he has known. Some have despaired of progress, some have accounted it actual and even inevitable. Few have assessed its potentiality, and fewer still have defined the criteria for identifying it. There are culture changes and these are sometimes cumulative; and the laws of change, development, and evolution are pertinent to an inquiry into progress; for if culture changes are inevitable or even likely, a theory of progress must take cognizance of them. Culture changes, however, and especially cumulative changes or developments, are not self-revealed, and the identification of them necessitates an interpretation of data. The methods used in reading the past, or in inferring it from present tendencies, likewise merit examination, for faith in results implies confidence in methods. The character of social change depends upon the culture. The possibilities and the limitations inherent in the social life of the ancient Greeks, for example, are to some extent peculiar to them and are nowhere duplicated; for even though the course of Greek culture might have been different, there are limitations in the extent to which, once under way, it could have been different. The potentialities and limitations inherent in culture are, therefore, part of the story of development and progress, and an account of the latter is not complete if it omits the former. There are numerous social developments, but each is specific, unique, and peculiar to the respective culture. An understanding of the development of recent means of transportation, for example, involves an understanding of Western culture before and after the Industrial Revolution. It cannot be understood by studying merely the changes in machinery and in technology. Science, economic organization, and many other phases of the culture are involved. A similar observation applies to political structure, social ideals, institutions, and international relations. Even an understanding of contemporary interpretations involves acquaintance with those of other centuries and cultures. Hindu and Greek, Roman and Egyptian, have interpreted progress, and though their views have much in common, each is to some extent an original interpretation as well as, no doubt, in part a borrowing. Since the Renaissance there have been many interpretations of progress, and acquaintance with them constitutes a proper background for a survey of recent speculation. It is necessary also to examine the presuppositions underlying the concepts of progress, and it is imperative to seek a criterion of it; to inquire to what extent historical developments and recent changes imply progress; and to ascertain to what extent social changes secure and insure values. A survey of the development of cultures contributes to an understanding of these problems. Men will not solve them, but as long as they struggle with obstacles, they will have occasion to ponder them; and a problem understood is already half solved.
