Auguste Comte: Volume 3: An Intellectual Biography

These volumes are the biography of Auguste Comte, the founder of modern sociology and a philosophical movement called positivism. Volume one offers a reinterpretation of Comte's "first career," (1798-1842) when he completed the scientific foundation of his philosophy. It describes the interplay between Comte's ideas and the historical context of postrevolutionary France, his struggles with poverty and mental illness, and his volatile relationships with friends, family, and colleagues, including such famous contemporaries as Saint-Simon, the Saint-Simonians, Guizot, and John Stuart Mill. The author shows that the man who called for a new social philosophy based on the sciences was not only ill at ease in the most basic human relationships, but also profoundly questioned the ability of the purely scientific spirit to regenerate the political and social world. Volume two begins to explore the life and works of Comte during his so-called second career, the controversial period that began in 1842 and lasted until his death. It covers the years from 1842 to 1852, when Comte transformed his positive philosophy into a political and religious movement. Focusing on key books, such as the Discours sur l'ensemble du positivisme, the author connects Comte's intellectual development to the tumultuous historical context and to episodes in his personal life, especially his famous relationship with Clotilde de Vaux. The book examines why workers, doctors, women, and famous writers, such as John Stuart Mill, George Henry Lewes, and Emile Littré, were drawn to his thought.