Social institutions are peace treaties between imitation and individual differentiation.
Evidence
The principle of adherence to given formulas, of being and of acting like others, is irreconcilably opposed to the striving to advance to ever new and individual forms of life; for this very reason social life represents a battle-ground, of which every inch is stubbornly contested, and social institutions may be looked upon as the peace-treaties, in which the constant antagonism of both principles has been reduced externally to a form of cooperation. — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 712
Categorization
- APHORISMS: Simmel’s ‘institutions as peace-treaties’ metaphor is a usable lens for any social arrangement, including the civil-inattention contract among urban strangers.
- XREF: connects to: Social relations crystallize into fixed external forms that cannot keep pace with inner life — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 778; Societies require a mix of discord and harmony to take determinate shape — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 85
Related
- Societies require a mix of discord and harmony to take determinate shape (similarity 0.88)
- The individual’s inner mental relations mirror social relations among persons (similarity 0.81)
- Social relations crystallize into fixed external forms that cannot keep pace with inner life (similarity 0.81)
- Irreconcilable conflict gives society its texture, durability, and resilience (similarity 0.81)
- No institution can fully reconcile social uniformity and individual differentiation. (similarity 0.81)
- Individual motives become social only through forms of mutual interaction (similarity 0.80)
- Identical interaction forms recur across radically different social groups (similarity 0.79)
Broader Connections
- Social relations crystallize into fixed external forms that cannot keep pace with inner life
#expands(0.70) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 778 - Societies require a mix of discord and harmony to take determinate shape
#expands(0.60) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 85