Overview
In the aftermath of the 1863 Uprising, many Poles began to voice an opinion that further attempts at regaining independence from Russia, Prussia and Austro-Hungary, by force of arms, should be abandoned. Along with polemics which questioned the wisdom of resistance, published between 1868–1873 in the Weekly Review (Przegląd tygodniowy) and Truth (Prawda), they – often reluctantly and only partially – set aside the style of the languishing Polish Romantic period.
Polish "Positivism" drew its name from the philosophy of Auguste Comte. Much of its ideology was inspired by the works of British scholars and scientists including Herbert Spencer and John Stuart Mill. The Polish Positivists advocated the exercise of reason before emotion. They believed that independence, if it is to be regained, must be won gradually, by "building from the foundations" (creating a material infrastructure and educating the public) and through organic work that would enable Polish society to function as a fully integrated social organism (a concept borrowed from Herbert Spencer).
Read more about this topic: Positivism In Poland