Keith Taylor - Henri Saint-Simon, (1760-1825) (RLE Social Theory)

ROUTLEDGE LIBRARY EDITIONS: SOCIAL THEORY

Volume 28

Translated and edited by
KEITH TAYLOR

First published in 1975

This edition first published in 2015
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1975 Keith Taylor

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ISBN: 978-0-415-72731-0 (Set)
eISBN: 978-1-315-76997-4 (Set)
ISBN: 978-1-138-78611-0 (Volume 28)

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Selected writings on science, industry and social organisation

Translated and edited by
KEITH TAYLOR

1975 Keith Taylor

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When Saint-Simons writings first appeared, during the first quarter of the nineteenth century, they invariably aroused little more than amusement and mild curiosity. The ideas they contained ideas concerning, for example, the application of scientific method to the study of man and society, the coming of a new scientific-industrial age in which the State would assume responsibility for promoting social welfare, the prospects for international co-operation and integration in Europe, mans need for a secular religion were widely dismissed as the eccentric products of a disturbed mind. In view of the boldness and originality of Saint-Simons thought, such a reaction is not surprising. Today, however, when social science is an established academic discipline, when scientific-industrial society and the Welfare State are realities, when a movement towards European unity is under way, and when the secular religion of Marxist communism is the established basis of social organisation in many parts of the world, his ideas deserve to be treated with more respect.

In view of Saint-Simons historical importance as a founding father of social science and socialism, and considering the intrinsic interest and continuing relevance of his theory of social organisation, it is surprising to find that in the 150 years since his death (the anniversary falls on 19 May 1975) only a very small proportion of his works has appeared in English. A translation of Nouveau christianisme, by J.E. Smith, was published in 1834; and in 1952 a collection of selected writings, edited and translated by F.M.H. Markham, was published. This edition (full details of which are given in the bibliography) certainly provides a valuable introduction to Saint-Simons thought. However, it is somewhat limited in scope, especially in its coverage of the major writings published during the Restoration Monarchy, in which the full doctrine of industrialism is expounded. Three of these works Le Politique, Du systme industriel, and the Catchisme des industriels are not represented at all; while two others LIndustrie and LOrganisateur are represented by only one very brief extract each.

In the present volume my aim is to provide a much more comprehensive and representative selection of texts than that offered by Markham, including extracts from some important less-known works which shed valuable light on Saint-Simons thought. The texts are presented in chronological order to enable the reader to follow the evolution of their authors doctrine through its several distinct phases.

Certain writings commonly attributed to Saint-Simon, but which are now known to have been the work of Auguste Comte, his collaborator from 1817 to 1824, are not represented in this selection. These are: the whole of volume III and the first part of volume IV of LIndustrie (1817); and the eighth and ninth letters of LOrganisateur (1820). These writings were originally published in Saint-Simons name, but research has shown conclusively that Comte was their author. Thus, while Saint-Simon would seem to have approved of their content, it would be taking literary licence too far to include them in a selection intentionally restricted to his own works.

A similar problem is presented by another text: De la physiologie applique lamlioration des institutions sociales (1825), which has usually been attributed to Saint-Simon and regarded as one of his most important works. In fact the bulk of this text (the Introduction) was written by his colleague, Dr. E.-M. Bailly; Saint-Simon merely added some additional notes at the end (the Continuation). In the present selection, therefore, only the Continuation is represented.

It is my hope that this volume will not only help to make Saint-Simons importance more widely understood, but will also serve to dispel some of the confusion which presently clouds discussion of his thought. His ideas have been subject to so many different interpretations that the student cannot possibly be expected to assess their respective merits without some fairly detailed knowledge of the full range of his writings.

I should like to take this opportunity to thank all those friends and colleagues who were kind enough to comment on the early drafts of my Introduction: Jan Ciechanowski, Georg Iggers, David McLellan, Susan Saunders, Tom Nossiter, William Pickles, and Vincent Wright. Mr. Pickles linguistic expertise also helped me to improve various sections of the translation.

I am also grateful to the staff of the Bibliothque Nationale, Paris, the British Library of Political and Economic Science (London School of Economics), the British Museum reading room, the library of the Institut Franais du Royaume-Uni, and the University of London Library for their expert and efficient assistance; to Eileen Gregory, who typed a number of sections of the final script; and to Christopher Helm, whose encouragement and advice was much appreciated.

Finally, but by no means least, I have my wife Chris to thank for sharing all the trials and tribulations of authorship with me over the last two years.