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Soc 101: Introduction to Sociology Spring 2013 Course Instructor: Md. Zakir Hossain TEXT REQUIRED Richard T. Schaefer (2006), Sociology, McGraw-Hill. REFERENCE Anthony Giddens (2006), Sociology, Polity Press. Evaluation/Marks distribution. How did sociology begin?.
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Soc 101: Introduction to SociologySpring 2013Course Instructor: Md. Zakir HossainTEXT REQUIRED Richard T. Schaefer (2006), Sociology, McGraw-Hill. REFERENCE Anthony Giddens (2006), Sociology,Polity Press
How did sociology begin? • Sociology as an academic science was born in Europe in the19th century. • The development of sociology has to be understood in the contexts of the major changes that have created the modern world. • Three great revolutions that gave rise to the emergence of Sociology as an independent science are: - Industrial Revolution - French Political Revolution of 1789 - Revolution in science & technology
Impact of Industrial Revolution • Europe was changing from agriculture to factory production • Masses of people moved to the cities in search of work • In cities people met crowding, slum, poverty, unemployment, diseases, crime, etc. • The contemporary social thinkers tried to explain the social problems scientifically.
Impact of French Revolution • The French Revolution of 1789 created social disorder not only in France but also in entire Europe. • The old social order that was based on kinship, land, Church & monarchy became very shaky. • The social thinkers (e.g. Auguste Comte, Emile Durkheim) tried to find ways to re-establish social order. • They believed that the science of society is possible to explain social problems.
Impact of Scientific Revolution • In 19th century, natural sciences made tremendous progress. • The progress made by the natural scientists inspired social thinkers to follow their example. • If the scientific method can be successfully applied to the physical world, then why can’t it be applied to the social world?
Early Sociologists and their contribution Auguste Comte (1798-1857) • Considered to be the founder of sociology. His famous work was Positive Philosophy. • Coined the term sociology for the first time at about 1839 & provided an organized foundation for the field. • Believed that the major goal of sociology was to understand society scientifically. • Suggested the use of Positivism—applying the scientific approach to the social world.
Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) • What hold society together? • To answer this question Durkheim compared premodern and modern societies. • Mechanical Solidarity existed in primitive societies. People in premodern community were alike and functioned as “simple machine”. • Collectivism dominated over individualism. All the people shared the same beliefs and values. • Durkheim used term “Collective Consciousness” to reflect the shared ideas, values, and goals.
Emile Durkheim (contd.) Organic Solidarity • Its primary characteristic is the development of a division of labor. The basis of organic solidarity is interdependence. Each depends on the skills and knowledge of others. • Durkheim suggests that preindustrial societies are characterized by mechanical solidarity while in modern industrial societies solidarity is organic.
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