Thus, people can escape this tragedy of life only through philosophical renunciation of the desire for happiness. Renowned for his hostile attitude toward women, Schopenhauer also applied his insights to a consideration of the principles underlying human sexual activity. He argued that individuals are driven together not by feelings of sentimental love but by the irrational impulses of the will. The influence of Schopenhauer's philosophy may be seen in the early works of Nietzsche and in the music dramas of Wagner. Comte's chief significance derives from his role in the development of positivism and his work is considered the classical expression of the positivist attitude.
Positivism is the notion that empirical sciences are the only adequate source of knowledge.
In response to the scientific, political, and industrial revolutions of his day, Comte was fundamentally concerned with an intellectual, moral, and political reorganization of the social order. He believed the adoption of a scientific attitude was the key to such a reconstruction. The theological stage is reflected in such notions as the divine right of kings. At the metaphysical stage phenomena are explained by appealing to abstract philosophical categories. At the scientific stage the final evolutionary stage the quest for absolute explanations of metaphysical causes is abandoned.