This Week

1. This Week • The three “perspectives” of Sociology • Alienation as an example of theory

2. Theory The Framework of Sociology

3. Sociological Theory

4. Sociological TheoryOversimplified

5. Sociological Perspectives • The “story” of Sociology tends to be placed in boxes. • While sociologists are associated with certain perspectives, they are more complex that your text suggests. • To make it easy to understand, Sociology is divided into “perspectives.”

6. Sociological Perspectives • Conflict • Society changes as a result of struggles of various groups against each other. • Interactionist • The world is socially constructed - meaning that we interpret the world around us and act based on those interpretations. • Functionalist • The elements of society are understood by their role (function) in maintaining society.

7. Karl Marx • Lived from 1818 to 1883 • Political Economist • Studied Philosophy • Associated with the Conflict Perspective

8. Marx and Political Economy • Marx criticized political economy of his time. • Political Economists Like David Ricardo and Adam Smith ignored the detrimental impact of capitalism on workers.

9. Classes • Classes arise out of the ability of one group to take what some else produces. • Slave owners take the slaves’ labor and what they produce. • Feudal lords take what peasants produce. • Workers under capitalism receive wages instead of what they produce.

10. Two Classes • Capitalists and Workers are bound together by their relationship. • Capitalists want more production from the workers. • Workers want more wages for the work they do.

11. Conflict Perspective • Marx argued that the purpose of studying society is to better understand it and change it for the better. • The Conflict Perspective follows this tradition by studying conflicts and inequalities between groups. • Ethnic Conflict • Gender Inequality • The Conflict Perspective also suggests changes. • Informs public policy decisions. • Studies and participates in social movements.

12. Max Weber • Lived from 1864 to 1920 • Historical Sociologist • Critical of Marxists • Associated with Interactionist Perspective

13. Critical of Marxists • Weber criticized the simplistic view of Marxists during his time. • However, Weber, as well as so-called Marxists oversimplified Marx. • Weber actually followed Marx’s historical sociology approach.

14. Sociology as Science • Weber opposed Marx’s view that Sociology should actively promote change. • Weber felt Sociology should have “value neutrality” and be an objective science.

15. Verstehen • Weber also argued that Sociologists should attempt to study their subjects deeply. • Research should attempt to find the multiple causes of a social issue. • Sociology is different from “natural” sciences in that it is “interpretive.”

16. Interactionist Perspective • The focus on interpretation in the concept of Verstehen is the link between Weber and the Interactionist Perspective. • The Interactionist Perspective attempts to understand the meanings people associate with their social actions and the social institutions around them. • How do people define themselves? • Ethnicity • Gender

17. Emile Durkheim • Lived from 1858 to 1917 • Wanted to make Sociology a science. • Concerned with what held society together • Associated with the Functionalist Perspective

18. Social Facts • Durkheim argued that Sociologists should study “social facts” instead of philosophy and moral arguments. • Social facts are material and non-material things created by people. • Material social facts are laws, art, technology, etc. • Non-material social facts are values, morality, etc.

19. Integration into Society • Social institutions help integrate people into society. • Some institutions are better than others. • Durkheim used the example of religion to explain Suicide. • Catholics committed suicide less than Protestants because the Protestants had greater freedom in their religion.

20. Functionalist Perspective • Durkheim’s analysis of the role of institutions to integrate people into society demonstrated the “function” of social institutions. • People who follow the Functionalist Perspective attempt to demonstrate how different social institutions provide a function for society. • Law enforcement and courts plays the function of controlling unwanted behavior. • Religion performs the function of a sense of community. • Education socializes students to be good workers.

21. Sociological Perspectives • Conflict (Marx) • Society changes as a result of struggles of various groups against each other. • Interactionist (Weber) • The world is socially constructed - meaning that we interpret the world around us and act based on those interpretations. • Functionalist (Durkheim) • The elements of society are understood by their role (function) in maintaining society.

22. Your Job • What do you like about your job? • What do think are the positive elements of a good job? • What do you hate about your job? • What are the worst things about a bad job?

23. Alienation • According to Karl Marx, there are 4 forms of alienation. • Product • Process • Species Being • Others

24. Alienation from Product • Estrangement from the things we make • The things we make do not belong to us. • As the worker produces, they are debilitated. • Estrangement from nature • Workers do not engage environment directly. • Products take on a life of their own.

25. Alienation from Process • The mental aspect is stripped from labor. • People do not have control over their work. • People do not meet their needs directly. • Work is a means to earn wages. • Wages are used to buy the things we need.

26. Alienation from Others • Relations between people become relations between people and objects. • No longer meet our needs through people we know. • People treat each other as workers, not as fellow people.

27. Alienation from Species Being • What it means to be a social being is lost in wage work. • The ability to be creative in what we make is stripped away. • The social nature of making things is taken away since we usually do not know who ends up with the things we make.