Harriet Martineau, English Sociologist

Harriet Martineau, English Sociologist

Harriet Martineau (June 12, 1802 - June 27, 1876) was an English social theorist. She wrote essays from a sociological, holistic, religious, domestic, and, perhaps most controversial, sexual identity, a feminine perspective. She earned enough to be supported entirely by her writing, a challenging feat for a woman in the Victorian era. Auguste Comte coined the name sociology and published an exposition under the title of Cours de Philosophie Positive in 1839. Martineau undertook a translation that was published in two volumes in 1853 as The Positive Philosophy of Auguste Comte. It was a remarkable and successful achievement. In her own writings she taught that the study of society must include all its aspects including key political, religious and social institutions, and she insisted on the need to include the lives of women. She was the first sociologist to study such issues as marriage, children, religious life, and race relations. Finally, she called on sociologist to do more than just observe, they should also work to benefit the society. She died in 1876 at the age of 74. Some writers regard her as the first woman sociologist.

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