THE HUMANIST PERSPECTIVE, IN SOCIAL SCIENCE: THE CASE OF ERICH FROMM KENNETH 0 ' BRI EN B.A. (Honours) Social Sciences, University of Leicester, England, 1968 M.A., Sociology, Simon Fraser University, 1969 A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in the Department of Pol itical Science, Sociology and Anthropology @ KENNETH O'BRIEN 1972 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY April 1972 APPROVAL I Name : Kenneth 0' Brien Degree : Doctor of Phi 1osophy Title of Di ertation: The Humanist Perspective in Soci a1 Science: The Case of Erich Fromm Examining Committee: Chairman: Gary Rush Ernest Becker Senior Supervisor Karl Peter Heribert Adam Jeral d Zasl ove John ~fiaar External Examiner University of Cal ifornia, Santa Cruz, Cal ifornia Date Approved: L$L3L3A97L I ABSTRACT The dissertation is an examination of Erich Fromm's contribu- tion to humanist social science and a discussion of this contribution. It is suggested that From~n'smajor contribution is not accessible to social scientists in its directly apparent form. As a serious contri- bution to social science the immediately apparent meanings, of Fromm's ideas which are rendered at first reading of his writings, are quite 'deceptive. ' This deceptive quality in Fromm's opus has tended to re- sult in a number of critical articles and books on Fromm which stress his contributions as being that of an ethical philosopher rather than as a social scientist. This type of judgement has serious implications for the present situation whereby Fronun's work is generally regarded to be on the periphery of "institutional ized social science" conceptual- izations and consequently for advancement of the more recent development toward theoretical integration of the various disciplines which come under the rubric of the social sciences (i.e., sociology, social psy- chology, pol itical science and anthropology) . The task of this dissertation has been to extricate a systematic thematic structure in Fromm's opus, through a hermeneutic. Two propo- sitions underlie the interpretation of Fromm's work presented in this study. The first is that for Fromm humanism is essentially a vehicle for the realization of selfhood for all mankind, where selfhood implies the realization of man's powers. The second proposition is that Fromm's work involves a continuous integration of social-psychology and iii sociology . A survey of 1i terature,, on contemporary developments in the social sciences, indicate a gradual reawakening of interest in the idea of incorporation of a humanist perspective in contemporary social science. Such an incorporation tends to be increasingly viewed as a means to (a) resolving the problems of an overly positivistic empiri- cism in social science and, (b) providing the basis for the systematic integration, at the level of meta theory between the social psycho- logical and the structural level of analysis in the social sciences. The most significant conclusion drawn from the interpretative scheme of the study is that Fromm's work as a whole rests on a concep- tion of social science as an attempted synthesis of the 'key' ideas of Marx and Freud. The study presents a discussion of themes integrated to form a 'hexagon' along the following lines: a concept of essence; a sociological diachrony , in which the concept of character is central ; the concepts of power and humanism; an anthropology which is constituted of a philosophical anthropology and ethnography; and a concept of self. These themes also provide the foci of orientation for the various chapters of the work. In terms of the foregoing, Fromm's conceptions of social char- acter, his formulations on the nature of man and his articulation of good and evil are substantive categories of "a second order" predicated upon the earlier mentioned conception of social science. This conclu- sion is in contrast to most of Fromm's critics who belong to two groups: psychologists in search of a theory of socio-psycho pathology, and moral philosophers. The former group has tended to ignore the problem of a humanistic social science, while the latter group has emphasized the significance of From's ethical postulates without devel- oping the interconnection between ethical postulates and the infra- structural assumptions of social science, and empirical concepts such as power, character, and so on. It is asserted in this study that either treatment does not give full scope to the potentialities of Fromrn's empirical categories of character and social structure. This dissertation is partly based on the proposition that when From's theoretical conception of social science is extricated from the body of his writings we find a cogent argument for and a model of humanistic social science, as well as a more ramified concept of social character. In the first instance we find a systematic critique against much of contemporary social science. In the second instance we find a view of social character with affinities to Weber's 'ideal type' view of social science. Moreover, in those terms the concepts of 'good' and 'evil' are conclusions of Fromm's work and not conditions derived from his 'theoretical' analysis of human nature, as so many of his critics argue. Throughout the study attention is focused, where appropriate on the weaknesses of Fromm's formulations, most of which are substantive, for example his analysis of character and of power necessitate some re- formulation. Nevertheless his major contribution has been the call for reflectivity in social science theorizing, as an ingredient of the humanistic approach. I ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The ideas in this manuscript are the product of a long history of search for a synthetic format for ex- pression of a range of analytical, theoretical and practical problems which come under the rubric of the social sciences. While clear identification of such a f.ormat is impossible at this stage of development of the task, I have developed a clearer view of the centrality of a humanistic perspective to such a format. 1 am in- debted to Dr. Ernest Becker for encouragement and guidance, in an area in which one could easily become lost, when mainly lofty intentions prevail. Dr. Karl Peter acted as an effective 'sounding board' for many of my ideas and provided criticism for specific sections of the work. Dr. Jerald Zaslove has (worked) provided con- sistent advice over the last two years, through long hours of patient, probing discussions. Finally, I am indebted to a 'non-academic' who 1istened to ideas wh were too 'speculative' but pointed directions which I could not traverse. , TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page INTRODUCTION. xi I. ERICH FROMM'S CONCEPT OF SOCIAL SCIENCE . 1 Sociology and the Illusions of Reality . The Sociology of Knowledge . Summary Remarks: Fromm's Place on the Soci 01 ogy of Know1edge . Industrial Technology and Social Science Knowledge Summary: Kant's Influence on the Milieux of Marx and' Freud . Fromm's Articulation of Freudian Categories . , . "Hope," Knowledge and a Theory of Society: A Summation . 11. FROMM'S CONCEPT OF THE INDIVIDUAL . Some Notes on the Concept of Human Nature . The Concept of Essence in Human Nature . Summary . Human Nature in the Philosophy of Social Science . Summary and Discussion . From the Proposition of Human Nature to the Theory of Human Character . An Outline of Fromm's Theory of Human Character . Chapter , Page 111. A DISCUSSION OF ERICH FROMM'S THEORY OF HUMAN CHARACTER AND THE INDIVIDUAL . 106 The Dilemma of Modern Man as Located in his Character Structure . 124 Freedom from, Freedom and the Soci 01 ogi cal Diachrony . , . 128 The Contemporary Problem of Evil: The Authoritarian Character . , . 138 Summary . 145 IV. POWER AND MORALITY: LACUNAE IN PARSONS' SOCIOLOGY . 160 Introduction . 160 The Parsoni an Def ini tions of Power and Morality . 171 A Critique of: "On the Concept of Pol itical Power" . , . , . 180 Parsons' Empirical and Interpretive Essays . 191 Conclusions . 202 V . FROMM 'S "THEOLOGICAL AND RELIGIOUS WRITINGS" AS THE SOURCE OF HIS ANTHROPOLOGICAL PREMISS . 21 0 Format . 21 2 The Meaning of the Theological as Anthropology . 21 3 Theology as Anthropology: Two Aspects of the Tradition . , , . , . 217 Erich Fromm's Anthropol ogy and the Socialist Humanist Tradition . 226 The Second Aspect of the Tradition: "Academic Anthropology " . 229 ix Chapter Page An Analysis of the Ideational Aspects of Theology and the Early Christian Tradition in Fromm's Works . 232 A Presentation of Fromm's Substantive Anthropology . 243 From's Analysis of Christ and the Blending of the Philosophical and Evolutionist Traditions . 255 "Primitive Christianity" and the Early Christian Community . 262 Man: The Messiah Attains Divine Grace . 263 Synopsis ....e....e ... 271 Fromm's Misplaced Critics . * . 272 Summary . , . 281 VI. THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE SELF . 299 CONCLUSION . , . 346 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 355 THE HUMANIST PERSPECTIVE, IN SOCIAL SCIENCE: THE CASE OF ERICH FROMM INTRODUCTION Erich From's life work can be summarized in the question: What is the nature of evil, and how is it possible to develop a syste- matic analysis of evil that is at once soc'iological and clinical? Such a concern is by no means the sole prerogative of theologians and moral philosophies. In fact, such a concern can be metaphorically expressed as one side of a coin, the other side is the concern with 'self' which has been the undergirding of social science from its earliest formula- tion. Such a bold assertion in a study dedicated to the assertion that Fromm is a humanist social scientist, cannot unfortunately, move directly to the examination of Fromm's substantive formulations because existing in contemporary social sciences are particular conceptions of what constitutes social science. In the 'institutional ized' paradigms of social science the conceptions of what constitutes social science is at radical variance with the implicit conception, of science, of Erich From.