Jordan's Eugenic Research
A large aspect of David Starr Jordan's academic research was about the science of eugenics.
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His major contribution to eugenic theory was his belief that war had negative dysgenic impacts on racial health. After studying a few famous wars, Jordan concluded that war results in the death of brave men and the survival of cowardly men. Thus, Jordan believed that war resulted in a worsening of the race, as the cowardly men lived on to survive.
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Jordan's writings also popularized eugenic theory for a general audience. His popular 1911 Heredity of Richard Roe taught the basics of eugenics to the common reader: "if the fittest do not serve as parents, the next generations will not inherit fitness."
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In this text, Jordan also endorsed the sterilization and reproductive restriction of disabled people, citing the work of Charles Davenport, a fellow eugenicist and acquaintance. He emphasized the necessity of "limitation by public authority of the marriage of the defective, the insane, and the criminal."
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David Starr Jordan both researched eugenic theories and popularized eugenics to a wider audience.
![A cover page of a book written by David Starr Jodan: "The Heredity of Richard Roe: A Discussion of the Principles of Eugenics. By David Starr Jordan, President of Leland Stanford Jr., University. Boston: American Unitarian Association, 1911.](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/124541_c4700b4b76aa4e01874e916e5acc9d72~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_314,h_486,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/EM5rsfNUcAA1WDM_jfif.jpg)