Essay - Comte and Tonnies Compare and Contrast Comte and Tonnies on...

Comte and Tonnies

Compare and contrast Comte and Tonnies on their view of the social structure of society. Which had the more accurate *****? Explain ***** justify with specific points from their theories.

***** Comte, the founder of ***** theory of positivism, viewed all of society was an integrated whole. He believed that all ***** stemmed from the basic, three-part c*****struction of the hum***** mind, whereby individuals seek theological, metaphysical, and abstract explanations, from which they finally extrapolate an abstract or metaphysical conception of the world, an explanation that is the only truly objective view ***** any phenomena. Comte believed that students should concern themselves ***** ***** phenomena that have an objective, "positive," ex*****tence.

In *****, the German sociologist Ferdinand Tonnies based his sociological arguments not so much upon ideas about the ***** of the mind, but on the idea that the human will forms the impetus for societal development. Tonnies argued that *****re exist two basic forms of the human will. The essential ***** is the underlying or primal instinctive driving force for survival. Then, there ***** the arbitrary will, which is deliberative, purposive, and very specific ***** goal- oriented.

It is interesting to contrast these ***** philosophers, because Comte views society as moving ********** in terms of a quest for underst*****nding. Although materialistic in its emph*****is upon phenomenon that has an objective existence, as noted by both Ritzer in his comparative work on ***** theories, Comte's stress is upon the *****'s ability to focus and comprehend, and the limits and reasons for human mental structures to ***** evolved as ***** have. Comte's stress upon human underst*****ing in the individual is quite different from Tonnies' focus on human ex*****tence as ***** exercising of a variety of drives in the c*****text of groups, ra*****r than individual minds. Tonnies stresses the impact the human ***** and human goals have ***** the *****. He does not see ***** quest ***** understanding as the b*****ic human frame***** through which societal relationships are created. Given the broader view ***** society taken in recent years that tends ***** de-emp*****ize theology and the intellect as a cultur*****l product of philosophy's location in the academy, the German philosopher's ***** ultimately emerges as more