The Origins of Sociology

FK8R 34 Sociology A Introduction to Sociology Alisha Walsh In the mid 1800s, French author Auguste Comte came up with the term sociology. Although previous philosophers, historians and policy-making thinkers had studied and tried to make sense of their societies, this was when it began to develop as a distinctive science. Comte grew up in a time of great kindly and political upheaval. As the macrocosm rapidly changed, he and others began to get hold of the societies they lived in.He sought to create a science of golf-club that could explain the laws of the favorable world just as science explained the functioning of the physical world. (Giddens 200611) Throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth century political revolutions occurring without Europe, the reasonableness and the Industrial rotation either lead to previously unseen changes in many societies. The French Revolution of 1789 meant that monarchs of Europe came under severe scrutiny. Subjects began to question their div ine right to rule.Ideas of case-by-cases rights and their say in how caller was moderate emerged. Political parties and neighborly re take a shit quickly followed. Great scientific discoveries formed a perspective of flavour to science and reason to answer questions about the natural and social world. People were turning away from the church, trust and superstition for these answers. The Industrial Revolution 1780-1800 had a profound effect on Britain and laterally Europe. Almost all aspects of animation were changed as people became part of the factory schema.People moved from rural atomic number 18as and agricultural jobs to towns where social life was more impersonal and anonymous. They began to work by a clock instead of the rhythms of the season. Traditional values and roles were dropped as new ones evolved. To study Sociology, one must have what C. Wright Mills called a sociological imagination. sociological thinking and imagination requires us to remove ourselves fr om our everyday lives and experience, and look at them differently. Only then stub we realise that individual experience can actually reflect larger issues.He emphasised the difference in the midst of personal troubles of millue and earthly concern issues of social structure(Mills 2000 5) This means that the sociological imagination allows us to see that public issues such as war, marriage, the economy, urbanisation etc, can affect the individual as well as personal circumstance and experiences. The sociological imagination enables us to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two. That is its working level and its promise. (Mills 20002) He stated that sociologists must ask three crucial questions What is the structure of this occurrence society?Where does this society stand in human being history? What varieties of men and women prevail in this society and in the advance period? (Mills 2003) He believed that as individuals these questions would help us mak e sense of our own impersonate and experience in the society we live in and identify its structures and characteristics. He overly stated that they atomic number 18 the questions inevitably raised by any mind possessing the sociological imagination. For that imagination is the capacity to shift form one perspective to another.The sociological imagination allows us to be analytical and critical of the world and to look at the bigger picture. There are many sociological theories which attempt to explain how society works. They provide a framework for explaining social behaviour. They find the relation between individuals, groups and society. These theories can be commit into two broad categories, macro theories and micro theories. Macro theories such as Functionalism and Marxism look to explaining behaviour through the notion of social structures and look at society holistically.Macro theories tend to physical exercise quantitive research when a social supposition or model is b eing explored. Data has to be measurable and proccessed mathematically (surveys) to provide impartial conducts that can be measured, compared and related to large parts of society (Amit B. Marvasti 20047). Micro theories such as social follow up and typic interaction look at individual behaviour and how small scale interactions specify society. Micro theories use qualitive research methods, concentrating on smaller groups but providing more detailed analysis and descriptions of human experience.The experiment can be ground around a possibility and results are recorded as detailed, narrative descriptions as opposed to numerical codes found in quantitive research (Amit B. Mavasti 200410) Functionalism analyses how social structures explain behaviour. mutually beneficial parts of society have to function together to create a full-length system. Biological or mechanical analogies are often used. Functionalism emphasises integration, harmony, stability and continuity. It is a pos itive perspective that views even tragedies or divergence as serving a function in society. McClelland20011) It looks at society as a whole and is good at explaining the persistence of social phenomena (anomie). Marxism also focuses on social structures but is a strife theory. Society is made up of infrastructure and superstructure. This structure is based on the inequality of distribution of occupation and causes conflict. It recognises different power interests in groups and is good at explaining conflict and change ( SparkNotes Editors 2006). Social Action theory emphasises the intentional behaviour of individuals as the cause of social structure.Individuals regulate society as a result of intentional individual or group interaction. It concentrates on the meaning of social behaviour and its interpretation by others and is good at explaining small scale interactions. According to Anthony Giddens , good sociology must examine both social structures and social interactions. It is how a fuller understanding of social life is achieved (Giddens200525). Socialization, Social hostel and Social stratification are three key concepts in sociology that try to explain the relationship between the individual and society.Social put is the way in which societies basic requirements are met to exist, how peace and order is maintained. It is obtained formally through laws and through the use of social norms, roles and values. It involves a set of linked structures, institutions and practices that can maintain and enforce conformity and social order (Dr Almog 1998). Functionalist theory views individuals as contributing to social order by happily playing out their work roles within social institutions. These roles are guided by the norms and values we learn through socialization and are necessary for society to function (Dr Almog 1998).Marxist theory claims that social order is forced on the individual, norms and values are used by institutions that want to maintain capitalism. They are a way to control the working class (Giddens 2006 301-302). Social Action theory sees social order as a product of social interactions, symbolic meanings and how they are interpreted by others. The individual is a social actor who will interpret and bear on social stimuli and makes choices accordingly. Socialization is a lifelong learning process and plays a crucial part in forming our identities. It is the process by which individuals learn the culture of their society (Haralambos & Holborn 20083). The important stage of socialization occurs during infancy. The kidskin learns many basic behaviour patterns of its society by responding to the approval or disapproval of their parents and also by copying their example. In western societies, the educational system, religion, the mass media, the occupational group and peer groups are also important in the socialisation process ( Haralambos & Holbor20083).Functionalist theory believes that socialisation reinfor ces the social structure and maintains society. That it is operable and beneficial to social order. It transfers culture, norms and values to new generations and integrates individuals into society. It is the social glue that holds society together and helps create a sense of harmony and cooperation (Kent McClelland 2001). Marxism sees socialization as one of the most effective tools of the Bourgeoisie.It legitimises existing social inequalities and prepares the individual for a class related role they will fill indefinitely (SparkNotes Editors 2006). Social Action theory believes socialization is relevant in relation to symbols and their interpretation, the development of social identity and the small scale interactions that shape it. Socialisation helps maintain social order (Cardiff University 2010). Social Stratification is the ranking and ordering of individuals within a society. It is a structured hierarchy which leads to divisions and higher status, wealth and privilege for some groups.Social class is the stratification system found in modern industrial societies like the UK, but it can also occur callable to other attributes such as gender, age, religious education or military rank (Giddens 2006295) Members of a particular strata will share a similar lifestyle and common identity which will to some termination distinguish them from members of other social strata (H & H 200819) A utilitarianist perspective of social stratification is that it is based on meritocracy and is therefore an inevitable part of all societies.Talcott Parsons believed that social stratifications are a basic looking of shared values which are an essential part of a functioning society. Social stratification is functional because it integrates various groups in society (H& H200821) Marxism regards stratification as a divisive structure kind of than an integrated one. It is seen as a mechanism for the ruling class to exploit the subject class, rather than a means of furt hering collective goals (H & H 200827). Various institutions such as legal and political systems are used to dominate the subject class resulting in conflict (H & H 200828).Social action theory focuses on how a persons social standing affects their everyday interactions. According to Max Webber, social stratification not only involves class but also status and party (social status and political power) (Giddens 2006302-303). Social action theory studies the processes behind stereotypes, mixed interactions and labelling. Its notes how stratification is a way to put people in groups and questions how oftentimes power individuals in these groups have to realise their goals (Cardiff University 2010) ReferencesHaralambos & Holborn (2008) Sociology Themes and Perspectives , 7th Edition, London, Harper Collins Anthony Giddens (2006) Sociology, 5th Edition, Cambridge, law Press Amit B. Mavasti (2004) Qualititive Research in Sociology, London, Sage Publications Ltd C. Wright Mills (2000) The Sociological Imagination, 40th Edition, New York , Oxford University Press Inc cosmos Wide Web Page Kent McClelland, Grinnel College 2001 Functionalism (Online) Available web. grinnel. edu/courses/soc/s00/soc111-01/IntroTheories/Functionalism. tml SparkNotes Editors 2006 Sparknote on Sociology Major Figures (Online) Available http//www. sparknotes. com/sociology/major-figures/ (Acceseed 31 October 2012) Dr Oz Almog, Electronic diary of Sociology 1998 The Problem of Social Type A Review (Online) Availablewww. sociology. org/content/vol003. 004/almog. html (Accessed 31 October 2012) black Angus Bancroft and Sionead Rogers, Cardiff University 2010 Max Weber-Natural Science, Social Science and Value Relevance (Online) http//www. cf. ac. uk/socsi/undergraduate/introsoc/weber6. html