# Positivism — A General View of Positivism character guide

> Positivism in A General View of Positivism by Auguste Comte.

**Role:** supporting

**First appearance:** 0003-a-general-view-of-positivism

## Snapshot

The new general doctrine that fuses philosophy and polity into one system, promising to satisfy intellect, feeling, and imagination while remaking Western society.

## Who they are

Positivism enters the book as both a completed intellectual synthesis and a program for social regeneration, insisting that theory and practice can never be dissevered. Its tension is internal: it must overcome excusable prejudices and prove itself more than cold science, equally favorable to feeling and imagination. It matters because every early chapter is essentially an audition of its credentials, from generalizing scientific conceptions to systematizing the art of social life.

## Relationships

### [Catholicism](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/characters/catholicism)

_rivalry_

Positivism seeks to replace Catholicism as the unifying spiritual authority for modern society.

### [Poetry](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/characters/poetry)

_friendship_

Poetry gives emotional life and aesthetic form to the abstract principles of Positivism.

### [Humanity](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/characters/humanity)

_friendship_

Positivism is the philosophical system designed to serve and perfect Humanity.

## In the story

### [I: The Intellectual Character of Positivism](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/chapters/i-the-intellectual-character-of-positivism)

Presented as the new philosophy that synthesizes thought, feeling, and action, and subordinates intellect to heart while ensuring intellectual freedom.

### [II: The Social Aspect of Positivism, as Shown by Its Connection with the General Revolutionary Movement of Western Europe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/chapters/ii-the-social-aspect-of-positivism-as-shown-by-its-connection-with-the-general-revolutionary-movement-of-western-europe)

The new philosophical system that will direct social reconstruction and reorganize human life.

### [The Action of Positivism Upon the Working Classes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/chapters/iii-the-action-of-positivism-upon-the-working-classes)

Presented as the only doctrine capable of providing a universal education that reconciles intellectual and moral training.

### [The Relation of Positivism to Art](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/chapters/v-the-relation-of-positivism-to-art)

Presented as the philosophy that terminates the Revolution and provides the foundation for art by subordinating intellect to feeling and systematizing human life.

### [Endnotes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/chapters/endnotes)

Referenced in the context of the Positivist Calendar and the Politique Positive.

## Links

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- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_view_of_positivism_se/characters