Simmel wrote extensively on the
dynamic inter-connectedness and the conflict between individuals, between
individual and society, between social groups and between elements of culture.
Simmel’s dialectical approach may be analyzed in terms of three main emphases:
i. The Principle of Dualism: This is
based on the assumption that the subsistence of any aspect of human life
depends on the co-existence of diametrically opposed elements. According to Simmel, man position in the world is
defined by the fact that, in every dimension of his being and behavior and also
finds himself at every moment between two boundaries. This appears as the
formal structure of our existence, manifesting itself in continually new
content in the manifold provinces, activities and destinies of human life. The
content and value of each hour stand between a higher and a lower, every
thought between a wiser and a more foolish, every possession between a more
extended and a more limited, every deed between a greater and a lesser measure
of meaning, and morality.
Unlike Comte, Simmel could not conceive of a Golden society free from tensions,
clashes and feudal; a conflict-free society is imposible. Conflict and
consensus, order and disorder, war and peace constitute a part of the eternal
dialectic of social life. They are like two sides of the same reality, both
natural and inevitable.
ii. Forms of Interaction: Simmel applies the principle of dualism
to the relationship between individual and society and to various forms of
sociation. He insisted that “sociation”
always involved both harmony and conflict, both attraction and repulsion, both
love and hatred. All human relationship experiences this dialectical tension,
this intrinsic ambivalence. There is no empirically demonstrable group of
individuals which is entirely harmonious, devoid of tension and conflict. He
therefore made a point of distinguishing between social appearances,
relationships as they appear to others outside the group, and social realities,
relationships as they exist within the interaction unit.
iii. Positive Functions of Conflict: Simmel demonstrated that social
relationships, often held to be obvious, were frequently incorrect, as his
discussions of the mutuality of superior-subordinate relationship, for
instance, demonstrated. And also illustrated the error in the commonly held
belief that conflict between individuals or within a group is a totally
negative process destructive of social relationships and group unity.
For example, his
analysis of conflict as a form of sociation showed how it may promote social
unity as well as disunity. He contended that all social relationships have both
positive and negative elements, attraction and repulsion, harmony and disorder.
Rejecting the notion that conflict is a temporary
phase which is eventually transformed into unity, Simmel insisted that peace
and conflict are reciprocally intertwined in historical reality. Neither peace
nor conflict is the ultimate manifestation of historical reality; they exist as
equal. Just as conflict is transformed into peace, it is equally possible for
peace to be transformed into conflict.
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