Law of three stages
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The law of three stages is an idea developed by Auguste Comte. It states that knowledge of any subject always begins in theological form, passes to the metaphysical form, and finally becomes positive.
The Theological form refers to explanation by personified deities. Comte broke this stage into 3 sub-stages:
1. Animism- Turning everyday objects into items of extreme religious purpose and worship, perhaps with godlike qualities.
2. Polytheism - Explanation of things through the use of many gods.
3. Monotheism - Attributing all to a single, supreme deity.
The Metaphysical form refers to explanation by impersonal abstract explanation. often those with metaphysical systems would believe they are actually preforming science, but are not.
Positivity refers to scientific explanation based on observation, experiment, and comparison. Positive explanations rely upon a distinct method, the scientific method, for its justification.
Also, there is a hierarchy of the sciences based on the historical sequence of the sciences, with areas of knowledge passing through these stages in order of difficulty. The simplest and most remote become scientific first. These are followed by the more complex sciences, those considered closest to us.
The sciences, then, based on this law, developed in this order: Mathematics; Astronomy; Physics; Chemistry; Biology; Psychology; Sociology.
