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2 - Tensions in Comte's Relationships, 1842–1846

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2010

Mary Pickering
Mary Pickering
Affiliation:
San José State University, California
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Summary

One can, to an almost laughable degree, infer what a man's wife is like, from his opinions about women in general.

John Stuart Mill, The Subjection of Women

DIFFICULTIES IN COMTE'S FRIENDSHIP WITH MILL

Comte and John Stuart Mill had been corresponding since November 1841, when Mill sent Comte a letter expressing admiration for his work. Mill's interest in Comte, however, dated back to 1828. At that time, Comte's friend Gustave d'Eichthal had given Mill a copy of the fundamental opuscule, the Plan des travaux scientifiques nécessaires pour réorganiser la société. (This essay, published in 1824, was one of Comte's most important works.) For years, Comte had played a crucial role in Mill's intellectual development. His influence peaked with the publication of volume six of the Cours, which caused Mill to revise his own System of Logic (1843). Impressed with Mill's adherence to his doctrine, Comte told his friend Valat that Mill was “with me, the only thinker who can be seriously called a completely positive philosopher.” His correspondence with Mill became “a real need,” one that was not only intellectual but emotional.

Yet their game of mutual admiration became increasingly problematic beginning in late 1842. Mill questioned Comte's insistence on giving heads of industry the responsibility for maintaining temporal order. How was Comte going to ensure that an individual became an industrial leader because he had true talent rather than simply wealthy parents or some other fortuitous advantage? Moreover, what political role would the workers play in the positive era?

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Auguste Comte
An Intellectual Biography
 , pp. 70 - 132
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009

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