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Social chemistry
In science, social chemistry is a view proposed in 1871 by English biologist Thomas Huxley that society as a whole is a social molecule and that "social chemistry" is what is called politics. [1] Specifically, according to Huxley:
He continues, ‘the social molecule exists in virtue of the renunciation of more or less of this freedom by every individual. It is decomposed, when the attraction of desire leads to the resumption of that freedom the expression of which is essential to the existence of the social molecule.’ Moreover, he reasons in a way that coins a new term:
In commentary on Huxley’s proposal for the science of social chemistry, in which the sociologists are suggested to “emulate and copy the chemists”, in 1962, author Werner Stark asks “why should no social chemistry ever been developed?” He states that “nobody would suggest that the social scientists should imitate meteorology, for this discipline does not appear to have got very far … but what about chemistry?” He states “a sociology based on chemistry [has] in fact been called for, but, significantly, [this call has] found no echo.” Stark reasons, naively, that it would have been easy to take up the suggestion of Huxley and develop it further. He reasons, “an intending social chemist would have found it one whit more difficult to manufacture a sociological parallel to the Boyle-Charles law than Haret did to the Newtonian propositions. But the experiment appears never to have been tried.”
See also
● Human chemistry
References
1. Huxley, Thomas. (1871). “Administrative Nihilism”, Fortnightly Review, pg. 536. Nov. 1.
2. Stark, Werner. (1962). The Fundamental Forms of Social Thought. (pgs. 261-63). Routledge.
"Every society, great or small, resembles ... a complex molecule, in which the atoms are represented by men, possessed of all those multifarious attractions and repulsions which are manifested in their desires and volitions, the unlimited power of satisfying which we call freedom."
He continues, ‘the social molecule exists in virtue of the renunciation of more or less of this freedom by every individual. It is decomposed, when the attraction of desire leads to the resumption of that freedom the expression of which is essential to the existence of the social molecule.’ Moreover, he reasons in a way that coins a new term:
"the great problem of social chemistry we call politics, is to discover what desires of mankind may be gratified, and what must be suppressed, if the highly complex compound, society, is to avoid decomposition."
In commentary on Huxley’s proposal for the science of social chemistry, in which the sociologists are suggested to “emulate and copy the chemists”, in 1962, author Werner Stark asks “why should no social chemistry ever been developed?” He states that “nobody would suggest that the social scientists should imitate meteorology, for this discipline does not appear to have got very far … but what about chemistry?” He states “a sociology based on chemistry [has] in fact been called for, but, significantly, [this call has] found no echo.” Stark reasons, naively, that it would have been easy to take up the suggestion of Huxley and develop it further. He reasons, “an intending social chemist would have found it one whit more difficult to manufacture a sociological parallel to the Boyle-Charles law than Haret did to the Newtonian propositions. But the experiment appears never to have been tried.”
See also
● Human chemistry
References
1. Huxley, Thomas. (1871). “Administrative Nihilism”, Fortnightly Review, pg. 536. Nov. 1.
2. Stark, Werner. (1962). The Fundamental Forms of Social Thought. (pgs. 261-63). Routledge.
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