Blackwell Reference Online

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Auguste Comte's place in the history of revolution and protest derives from his extensive contributions to social theory. He has been credited with being the first western sociologist and with coining the term “sociology” in 1838 to refer to the scientific study of society. He formulated and promulgated the philosophical doctrine known as positivism, and initiated the concept of altruism.Comte was a major influence on nineteenth-century philosophers, historians, and social theorists attempting to create a “science of society,” such as John Stuart Mill and Karl Marx. Mill's Auguste Comte and Positivism is among the most important expositions of Comte's philosophical ideas.Comte was born into a Catholic and monarchist family in Montpellier, France, but as a young man he renounced the religious and political views of his upbringing. He attended the Université de Montpellier as well as the prestigious Ecole Polytechnique from 1814 to 1816, but was expelled from the latter during its royalist reorganization. He continued his studies on his own and was influenced by Montesquieu, Adam Smith, and, in particular, Condorcet's Sketch for a Historical Picture of the Progress of the Human Mind.In 1817, Comte became Henri de Saint-Simon's secretary, a partnership that lasted until 1824 when they had a bitter falling out. Comte was unable to find an academic position and supported himself by tutoring. ... log in or subscribe to read full text