These basic components are called atoms, hence the name atomism. Atomism has almost always been stated as a materialistic doctrine. Atomism definition, the theory that minute, discrete, finite, and indivisible elements are the ultimate constituents of all matter. Atomism has also spread to biological phenomena, including the phenomenon of heredity. The metatheoretical difference between social atomism and social holism is clarified by analysis of the generic necessity of trust. Refute this doctrine, and quite possibly the entire theoretical structure of libertarianism might collapse. Atomism is the theory that all of reality and all the objects in the universe are composed of very small, indivisible and indestructible building blocks known as atoms from the greek atomos, meaning uncuttable. The conflict theory is a macrolevel theory designed to study the larger social, national, regional, or global levels of sociological phenomena. They had few innate properties size, shape, order, and position and could hit each other in the void. Atomism article about atomism by the free dictionary. Critics of classical liberalism assume that its radical individualist foundations are both necessary for its defense and its achilles heel. This leads logically to the position that only atoms exist, and there are no composite objects objects with parts, which would mean that human bodies, clouds, planets, etc, all. Contemporary variations of social atomism include types of social psychological theory, especially economictype exchange theory homans, 1950, 1961 and radical reality construc. Notably, dr robert willmott, author of education policy and realist social theory and dr justin cruickshank, senior lecturer at the university of birmingham.
A theoretical approach to trust can be traced from durkheim, simmel, parsons, and the recent work of luhmann and barber. Individualist atomist theories emphasize the selfsufficiency and moral autonomy of persons. According to this theory, there are social laws that are not psychologically intelli. This theory was developed by a famous greek philosopher, who lived between 460370 bc. Sociological theories an overview of major frameworks. Atomism, monism, and causation in the natural philosophy. Atomism was one of the theories the ancient greek natural philosophers devised to explain the universe. This is a question of whether the universe or its aspects should be viewed as wholes, something more than its parts as a melody is more than its individual notes, or whether all are divisible into fundamental parts which constitute the wholes familiar to us. It teaches that the hidden substance in all physical objects consists of different arrangements of atoms and void see the section on the doctrine of atomism for more details. Frank cognitive science is in many ways preoccupied with concepts. The meaning of theory as a term of art, kocial theory is a distinctly recent invention.
Social atomism might well be the foundational doctrine of libertarianism, upon which all other planks of the libertarian platform market fundamentalism, privatism, minimal government, spontaneous order are supported. Auguste comte coined the term sucioi0 gie in france in the 1840s, but sociology too did not gain widespread currency as a term. One of the most distinguishing philosophies of democritus is his theory of atomism, which has since stood the test of time. The ancient greek atomists theorized that nature consists of two. In the style of jerry fodor, a concept is a mental word. Atomism atomism history and major representatives of the various atomisms. The ancient theory of democritus, epicurus, and lucretius, according to which simple, minute, indivisible, and indestructible particles are. We call on the ideas of social atomism when we reason about political and ethical issues. The theory emerged to beat the odd logics of eleatic school, which argued that everything was one. In the scientific rendering of the word, atomism refers to the notion that all matter in the universe is composed of basic indivisible components, or atoms. Now with 70 additional terms as well as a readers guide, key references have been updated and several terms and phrases from previous editions have been reo. Ancient atomism stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Atomism stands in contrast to a substance theory wherein a prime material continuum remains qualitatively. Atomism is a presocratic school of thought from ancient greece, established in the late 5th century b.
The atoms, from the greek for not cut were indivisible. Quite apart from the question of mind versus matter considered in chapter 32 is that of the organized nature of the world. Therefore, he appealed to no god when judging human conduct. Social learning theory is a theory that attempts to explain socialization and its effect on the development of the self. Atomism definition of atomism by the free dictionary. Atomism social atomism is a theory according to which social organizations, values, and processes arise solely from the acts and interests of individuals, who. These atoms of thought can be derived by breaking down more complex thought structure. Some of these figures are treated in more depth in other articles in this encyclopedia. It looks at the individual learning process, the formation of self, and the influence of society in socializing individuals. He was born in abdera, a city in north coast of aegean sea, which was the main city in greece. A number of important theorists in ancient greek natural philosophy held that the universe is composed of physical atoms, literally uncuttables. Analytical dualism archer argues that much social theory suffers from the generic defect of conflation where, due to a reluctance or. The term atomism is used loosely to characterize the doctrines of social contract theory which arose in the seventeenth century and also successor doctrines.
The philosophy of logical atomism university of alberta. Atomist theories of concepts bibliography philpapers. The philosophy of logical atomism 1918 1 1 facts and propositions 1 2 particulars, predicates, and relations 15 3 atomic and molecular propositions 32 4 propositions and facts with more than one verb. Atomism by movement school the basics of philosophy. Liberalism and atomistic individualism springerlink. Atomism is the belief that simple, indivisible particles are the basic components of the universe. A theoretical approach to trust can be traced from durkheim, simmel, parsons, and the recent work of luhmann and. I had elaborated it to a degree here, but have so far failed to fulfill my promise to look at the impact of social atomism on social systems. For more than two centuries classical liberalism has irked thinkers both right and left.
View atomism and holism research papers on academia. No such term exists in english or in any other language before the twentieth centuryi and even io the twentieth century it is not common before about the 1940s. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. It is characteristic of the importance of greek philosophy that, already in the foregoing exposition of the different aspects of atomism, several greek philosophers had to be introduced. Radical individualism is the view that human individuals. Atomism, monism, and causation in the natural philosophy of margaret cavendish karen detlefsen i. Atomism by branch doctrine the basics of philosophy. Atomism info the resurgence of the classical scientific. Philosophical aspects in the philosophy of the social sciences, atomism is the view that human beings can be thinking, rational beings independently of social. Atomism and holism in the understanding of society and social. Atomism and holism in the understanding of society and. Ever since, they have developed the theory that has now been universally approved and used by many scientists. Atomism or social atomism is a sociological theory arising from the scientific notion atomic theory, coined by the ancient greek philosopher democritus and the roman philosopher lucretius. In this paper i will analyze democritus theory of atomism.
In parallel i promised to argue that focusing on identity not the individual as the primary unit of analysis resolves a lot of otherwise intractable problems. Bob hruzek hinted that i had started but not yet finished my discourse on natural numbers. Atomism and holism in the understanding of society and social systems 190 koers 732 2008. Here is an apparently straightforward philosophical story about concepts. The various arguments of atomism trace the various attempts to understand sufficiently why some things of the world, such as different fires, are so similar in appearance and yet other things, such as dark nights, are so different from their opposites, as fires compared to dark nights around 475 bc, parmenides in his philosophical poem on nature posed the puzzle this way. Pdf atomism and holism in the understanding of society and social systems. Atomism is the final, and most successful, attempt to rescue the reality of the physical world from the fatal effects of eleatic logic by means of a pluralistic theory. In the concluding section i discuss the inadequacies of atomism and pragmatism and why ultimately holism is the most appealing position atomism. Pdf atomism and holism in the understanding of society and. From the ancient greeks through the 16th century, atomism remained mainly philosophical. Social atomism or atomistic individualism holds that the social world is built. Atomism is the theory in natural philosophy developed by the early greek natural philosophers leucippus fl. But this ordinary practical freedom of ours becomes a theoretical impossibilint in the fragmented. Hegel, rousseau, comte, and of course karl marx did a great deal of penwielding to combat it, and one of their most potent weapons was to link the ideals of a fully free society to the flaws of scientism and one of its products, subjective or narrow individualism.
A school of thought in psychology that the content of mind can be distilled down to discrete and independent units that cannot be broken down further. Atomism, any doctrine that explains complex phenomena in terms of aggregates of fixed particles or units. Social ontology stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. This philosophy has found its most successful application in natural science. Atomism was devised by leucippus and his student democritus. Atomism history and major representatives of the various.
General social activitiesmeeting and mingling with others. Three issues in social ontology princeton university. Contemporary american social and moral theories and our political. Not every theory in social ontology needs to make this.
In a broader sense, atomism is sometimes used to refer to the discrete quality in general of any object, property, or process for example, social atomism or logical atomism. For example, atomism underpins competencybased education, and pragmatism is at the root of many inquirybased approaches. Atomism or social atomism is a sociological theory arising from the scientific notion atomic theory, coined by the ancient greek philosopher democritus and the. Marx was a witness to oppression perpetrated by societys elite members against the masses of poor. Introduction in 1653 margaret cavendish published her first book, a book of poems poems, and fancies, the first fifty pages of which are devoted to expounding an atomic theory of nature. This view of social order is expressed in the social contract theory associated with hobbes, locke, rousseau, spencer, and others. One reason for this preoccupation stems from the role of concepts in what is commonly called the classical view of cognition. Philosophical atomism is a reductive argument, proposing not only that everything is composed of atoms and void, but that nothing they compose really exists. The term atomism is used loosely to characterize the doctrines of social contract theory which arose in the seventeenth century and also successor doctrines which may not have made use of the notion of social contract but which inherited a vision of society as in some sense constituted by individuals for the fulfilment of ends which were.
1467 817 327 1249 847 1008 840 962 199 785 137 235 71 34 869 423 489 822 1366 232 982 872 1225 1104 280 1290 949 1083 364