Comte
Synopsis
Born in 1798, Auguste Comte grew up in the wake of the French Revolution. He rejected religion and royalty, focusing instead on the study of society, which he named "sociology." He broke the subject into two categories: the forces holding society together ("social statics") and those driving social change ("social dynamics"). Comte's ideas and use of scientific methods greatly advanced the field.
Overview
Philosopher Auguste Comte was born on January 19, 1798, in Paris, France. He was born in the shadow of the French Revolution and as modern science and technology gave birth to the Industrial Revolution. During this time, European society experienced violent conflict and feelings of alienation. Confidence in established beliefs and institutions was shattered. Comte spent much of his life developing a philosophy for a new social order amidst all the chaos and uncertainty.
Early Life
Comte’s father, Louis, a government tax official, and his mother, Rosalie (Boyer) Comte, were both monarchists and devout Roman Catholics. While attending the University of Montpellier, Comte abandoned these attitudes in favor of republicanism inspired by the French Revolution, which would influence his later work.
In 1814, he entered École Polytechnique and proved to be a brilliant mathematician and scientist. He left school before graduating and settled in Paris with no viable way to support himself. He earned a meager living teaching mathematics and journalism while deep in the study of economics, history and philosophy.
At 19, Comte met Henri de Saint-Simon, a social theorist interested in utopian reform and an early founder of European socialism. Deeply influenced by Saint-Simon, Comte became his secretary and collaborator. In 1824, the partnership ended over disputed authorship of the pair’s writings, but Saint-Simon’s influence remained throughout Comte’s life.
Philosophical Ideas
Free on his own, Comte developed a social doctrine based on
Born in 1798, Auguste Comte grew up in the wake of the French Revolution. He rejected religion and royalty, focusing instead on the study of society, which he named "sociology." He broke the subject into two categories: the forces holding society together ("social statics") and those driving social change ("social dynamics"). Comte's ideas and use of scientific methods greatly advanced the field.
Overview
Philosopher Auguste Comte was born on January 19, 1798, in Paris, France. He was born in the shadow of the French Revolution and as modern science and technology gave birth to the Industrial Revolution. During this time, European society experienced violent conflict and feelings of alienation. Confidence in established beliefs and institutions was shattered. Comte spent much of his life developing a philosophy for a new social order amidst all the chaos and uncertainty.
Early Life
Comte’s father, Louis, a government tax official, and his mother, Rosalie (Boyer) Comte, were both monarchists and devout Roman Catholics. While attending the University of Montpellier, Comte abandoned these attitudes in favor of republicanism inspired by the French Revolution, which would influence his later work.
In 1814, he entered École Polytechnique and proved to be a brilliant mathematician and scientist. He left school before graduating and settled in Paris with no viable way to support himself. He earned a meager living teaching mathematics and journalism while deep in the study of economics, history and philosophy.
At 19, Comte met Henri de Saint-Simon, a social theorist interested in utopian reform and an early founder of European socialism. Deeply influenced by Saint-Simon, Comte became his secretary and collaborator. In 1824, the partnership ended over disputed authorship of the pair’s writings, but Saint-Simon’s influence remained throughout Comte’s life.
Philosophical Ideas
Free on his own, Comte developed a social doctrine based on