IV
Iwassayingamomentagothatourdoctrinemakeshistoryobjectiveandinacertainsensenaturalizesit，goingfromtheexplanationofthedata，evidentatfirstsight，ofthepersonalitiesactingwithdesign，andoftheauxiliaryconceptionsoftheaction，tothecausesandthemotivesofthewillandtheaction，inordertofindthereupontheco-ordinationofthesecausesandofthesemotivesinthepre-elementaryprocessusoftheproductionoftheimmediatemeansofexistence。
Nowthisterm\"naturalizing\"hasledmorethanonemindintoconfusingthisorderofproblemswithanotherorderofproblems，thatistosay，intoextendingtohistorythelawsandthemannersofthinkingwhichhavealreadyappearedsuitabletothestudyandexplanationofthematerialworldingeneralandoftheanimalworldinparticular。AndbecauseDarwinismsucceededincarrying，thankstotheprincipleofthetransformationofspecies，thelastcitadelofthemetaphysicalfixityofthings，andindiscerning，intheorganisms，phases，asitwere，andmomentsofarealandpropernaturalhistory，ithasbeenimaginedthatitwasacommonplaceandsimpleenterprisetoborrowforanexplanationofthefutureandthehistoryofhumanlifetheconcepts，theprinciplesandthemethodsofexaminationtowhichthatanimallifeissubjectedwhichinconsequenceoftheimmediateconditionsofthestruggleforexistenceisunfoldingtotopographicalenvironmentsnotmodifiedbytheactionoflabor。Darwinism，politicalandsocial，has，likeanepidemic，formanyyearsinvadedthemindofmorethanonethinker，andmanymoreoftheadvocatesanddeclaimersofsociology，andithasbeenreflectedasafashionablehabitandaphraseologicalcurrenteveninthedailylanguageofthepoliticians。
Itseemsatfirstsightthatthereissomethingimmediatelyevidentandinstinctivelyplausibleinthisfashionofreasoning，whichitmaybesaidisprincipallydistinguishedbyitsabuseofanalogyandbyitshasteindrawingconclusions。Maniswithoutdoubtananimal，andheislinkedbyconnectionsofdescentandaffinitytootheranimals。Hehasnoprivilegesoforiginorofelementarystructure，andhisorganismismerelyoneparticularcaseofgeneralphysiology。Hisfirstimmediatefieldwasthatofsimplenaturenotmodifiedbywork，andfromthencearederivedtheimperiousandinevitableconditionsofthestruggleforexistence，withtheconsequentformsofadaptation。Thencearebornracesinthetrueandauthenticsenseoftheword；thatistosay，insofarastheyareimmediatedeterminationsofblack，white，yellow，woolly-haired，straight-haired，etc。，andnotsecondaryhistorico-socialformations，thatistosay，peoplesandnations。Thenceareborntheprimitiveinstinctsofsociabilityandinlifeinpromiscuityarisethefirstrudimentsofsexualselection。
Butifwecanreconstructinimaginationtheprimitivesavage，bycombiningourconjectures，itisnotgivenustohaveanempiricalintuitionofhim，justasitisnotgivenustodeterminethegenesisofthathiatus，thatistosay，thatbreakincontinuity，thankstowhichhumanlifeisfounddetachedfromanimallifetorise，inthesequel，toaneverhigherlevel。