1798- 1857Auguste Comte

Lecture:

LifeWorksContribution

Life

Quick Facts

Also Listed In :Philosophers Nationality :French, Famous French Men religion :Atheist Born on :19 January 1798 AD    Zodiac Sign :Capricorn    Born in :Montpellier, France Died on :05 September 1857 AD place of death :Paris, France father :Louis Comte mother :Rosalie Boyer Spouse: :Caroline Massin (m. 1825–1842) education :École Polytechnique discoveries / inventions :Discipline Of Sociology And Of The

Doctrine Of Positivism

It is a philosophy of science that gained wide recognition in

the second half of the nineteenth century.

Auguste Comte or Isidore Auguste Marie François Xavier Comte was a prominent French philosopher.

He, for the first time, proposed the idea of positivism

Childhood & Early Life

Born in Montpellier, Herault, in southern France.

He studied at the Lycee Joffre and later attended the University of Montpellier.

Personal Life & Legacy

• He married his live-in partner Caroline Massin in 1824. They did not lead a happy married life on account of financial problems and he divorced his wife in 1842. From 1844, he developed a platonic relationship with Clotilde de Vaux.

• He passed away due to stomach cancer. He was buried in the Pere Lachaise Cemetry, Paris. His apartment, where he lived from 1841 to 1857, has been preserved as the Maison d’Auguste Comte which is a private museum.

Works

The Early EssaysThe Course of Positive PhilosophyThe Systems of Positive PolityThe Subjective SynthesisScientific Textbooks

The Early Essays/Writings

where one can see the influence of Saint-Simon, for whom Comte served as secretary from 1817 to 1824 A General Distinction Between Opinions and Desires

(1819) A Summary Appreciation of Modern Past (1820) A Plan for the Scientific Works Necessary to

Reorganize Society (1822) Philosophical Consideration on Science and Scientists

(1825) Considerations of Spiritual Power A Review of Broussais’s Treatise On Irritation (1828)

The Course of Positive Philosophy

six volumes, translated and condensed by Harriet Martineau as The Positive Philosophy of Auguste Comte

Like the physical world, society operated under its own set of laws.

Explains Comte’s three Law of Development.1. The Theological Stage (Fictitious)2. The Metaphysical State (Abstract)3. The Positive State (Scientific)

The Systems of Positive Polity

Two main tenets of positive politics1. There are no society without government2. The proper functioning of society requires a

spiritual power independent from the temporal power.

The Subjective Synthesis

He intended to be a review of the seven sciences from the point of view of the “subjective” method.

He intended to write, besides the volume on mathematics, two volumes on morals, theoretical and practical.

The remaining volumes he was prepared to leave to his successors.

Scientific Textbooks

Philosophical Treatise of Popular Astronomy (1844)

Elementary Treatise of Analytical Geometry (1843)

Contribution

Comte’s goal was to

Explain the pastPredict the future

Contribution

He coined the term “Sociology”2 broad area of Sociology

Social Statics Social Dynamics/ Social Change ( The

Law of Three Stages)

Theological or Fictitious Stage

Universe explained in terms of: Gods Demons Mythological Beings

In this stage the social and the physical

world was produced by God.

The concept of super natural power itself passes through four sub-stages. In other words Comte had divided the theological stage into the following four stages.

Fetishism- In this stage men thought that in every object or thing God resided. Fetishism is a kind of belief that there exists some living spirit in the non-living objects.

Anthropomorphism- With the gradual development in human thinking there occurred a change or improvement in the human thinking which resulted in the development of this stage.

Polytheism- He believed that each and every God had some definite function and his area of action or operation was determined. At this stage man had classified God’s or natural forces.

Monotheism- ‘Mono’ means one. It implied that one God was supreme who was responsible for the maintenance of system in the world. This type of monotheistic thinking marked the victory of human intellect over irrational thinking.

Metaphysical or Abstract Stage:

In this stage, people viewed the world and events as natural reflection of human tendencies.

Positivistic Stage:

• Experimentation• Observation• Logic

Three basic methods of Inquiry

Observation

Experiment

Historical Comparison

Three Levels of Society

The Individual

Family

Social Integration