Explorations in Classical Sociological Theory : Seeing the Social World

by Kenneth Allan

• ISBN13: 9781412992435
• ISBN10: 1412992435
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-04-30
• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc

Summary

Written in a praised conversational tone with personal examples and bolstered with helpful pedagogical tools, Explorations in Classical Sociological Theory: Seeing the Social World introduces readers to the major classical theorists: Marx, Spencer, Durkheim, Weber, Simmel, Mead, Schutz, Martineau Gilman, Du Bois, and Parsons. These theorists were chosen for diversity as well as utility in introducing students to contemporary theory. Author Kenneth Allan focuses on the specific views of each theorist, rather than schools of thought, and highlights modernity and postmodernity to help readers understand how classical sociological theory applies to their lives.An emphasis on teaching readers how to ôthink theoretically,ö offering the context of modernity as a meaningful frameworkA focus on the particular perspective of each theorist with its nuances intactA categorical scheme that helps students situate the theorists, compare their work, and ponder for themselves some of sociologyÆs big questionsExtensive use of original source material from theoristsÆ writings, displaying the power and poetry of theoryôDefinition,ö ôBig Idea,ö and ôGenesis of a Perspectiveö boxes throughout each chapter that discuss terms and concepts central to sociologyA ôBuilding Your Own Theory Toolboxö section at the end of each chapter to encourage further exploration

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xi
Beginning to See: A Sociological Core	p. 1
The Making of Modernity and the Modern Way of Knowing	p. 2
Institutions of Modernity	p. 4
The Birth of Sociology: August Comte	p. 5
Comte's Positivism	p. 7
The Evolution of Knowledge	p. 10
Theory	p. 12
Advantages and Goals of Positivism	p. 13
Seeing Society	p. 15
Sociological Methods	p. 16
Practicing Theory-A Summary	p. 18
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 22
Seeing Society for the First Time: Herbert Spencer	p. 23
Theorist's Digest	p. 24
The Sociological Imagination of Herbert Spencer	p. 25
Spencer's Life	p. 25
Spencer's Social World	p. 27
Spencer's Sociological Imagination: Functionalism	p. 30
Concepts and Theory: Social Evolution	p. 31
The Social System	p. 32
System Needs	p. 33
Differentiation and Specialization	p. 34
Types of Society	p. 36
Regulatory Complexity	p. 37
Industrial and Militaristic	p. 38
Concepts and Theory: Social Institutions	p. 43
Domestic Institutions	p. 44
Ceremonial Institutions	p. 46
Ecclesiastical Institutions	p. 47
Thinking About Modernity and Postmodernity	p. 49
Defining Postmodernity	p. 49
Religion: A Postmodern Case in Point	p. 50
Summary	p. 52
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 53
Class Inequality: Karl Marx	p. 57
Theorist's Digest	p. 59
The Sociological Imagination of Karl Marx	p. 59
Marx's Life	p. 60
Marx's Social World	p. 63
Marx's Intellectual World	p. 64
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel	p. 65
Ludwig Andreas von Feuerbach	p. 70
Adam Smith	p. 70
Marx's Sociological Imagination: Critical Conflict Theory	p. 73
Human Nature	p. 74
History-The Material Dialectic	p. 77
Concepts and Theory: The Contradictions of Capitalism	p. 79
Value and Exploitation	p. 80
Industrialization, Markets, and Commodification	p. 83
Concepts and Theory: Class Revolution	p. 86
Class and Class Structure	p. 87
Overproduction	p. 89
Concepts and Theory: The Problem of Consciousness	p. 89
Alienation, Private Property, and Commodity Fetish	p. 91
False Consciousness and Religion	p. 95
Class Consciousness	p. 99
Thinking About Modernity and Postmodernity	p. 103
Machines of Production and Consciousness	p. 103
Machines of Reproduction and Schizophrenic Culture	p. 104
Summary	p. 105
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 106
Diversity and Social Solidarity: Émile Durkheim	p. 109
Theorist's Digest	p. 110
The Sociological Imagination of Émile Durkheim	p. 111
Durkheim's Life	p. 111
Durkheim's Social World	p. 113
Durkheim's Intellectual World	p. 114
Montesquieu	p. 114
Jean-Jacques Rousseau	p. 117
Durkheim's Contribution to Functionalism	p. 120
Durkheim's Sociological Imagination: Cultural Sociology	p. 121
Concepts and Theory: Primal Society	p. 122
Defining Religion	p. 125
Creating a Sacred World	p. 127
Concepts and Theory: Social Diversity and Moral Consensus	p. 132
Mechanical and Organic Solidarity	p. 133
The Division of Labor	p. 137
The Problem With Modern Society	p. 138
Organic Solidarity and Social Pathology	p. 140
Concepts and Theory: Individualism	p. 144
Suicide	p. 144
The Cult of the Individual	p. 146
Thinking About Modernity and Postmodernity	p. 148
Grand Narratives, Doubt, and Civil Religion	p. 148
Summary	p. 151
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 153
Rationality and Organization: Max Weber	p. 157
Theorist's Digest	p. 159
The Sociological Imagination of Max Weber	p. 159
Weber's Life	p. 159
Weber's Social World	p. 163
Weber's Intellectual World	p. 168
The Problems of Values and Meaning	p. 169
Specific Methods: Ideal Types	p. 172
Specific Methods: Verstehen	p. 173
Weber's Sociological Imagination	p. 175
Concepts and Theory: The Process of Rationalization	p. 177
Types of Social Action	p. 178
Concepts and Theory: The Evolution of Religion	p. 181
From Magic to Religion	p. 181
From Polytheism to Ethical Monotheism	p. 184
Concepts and Theory: The Rise of Capitalism	p. 187
The Religious Culture of Capitalism	p. 187
Structural Influences on Capitalism	p. 191
Concepts and Theory: Class, Authority, and Social Change	p. 193
Class	p. 193
Status and Party	p. 196
Crosscutting Stratification	p. 198
Authority and Social Change	p. 199
Concepts and Theory: Rational-Legal Organization	p. 202
Ideal-Type Bureaucracies	p. 204
Effects of Bureaucratic Organization	p. 205
Thinking About Modernity and Postmodernity	p. 207
Summary	p. 210
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 212
Introduction: Another Sociological Core	p. 215
The Modern Person: George Herbert Mead and Georg Simmel	p. 219
George Herbert Mead-Symbolic Interaction	p. 221
Theorist's Digest	p. 223
Concepts and Theory: Truth, Meaning, and Action	p. 224
Pragmatic Truth	p. 224
Human Action	p. 225
Concepts and Theory: Meaning and Interaction	p. 226
Symbolic Interaction	p. 229
Concepts and Theory: Making Yourself	p. 229
The Mind	p. 231
Stages of Role Taking	p. 232
Self and Society	p. 234
The I and the Me	p. 235
Summary	p. 235
Georg Simmel-Formal Sociology	p. 237
Theorist's Digest	p. 239
Concepts and Theory: The Individual in Society	p. 239
Subjective and Objective Cultures	p. 241
Concepts and Theory: The Self in the City	p. 243
The Division of Labor	p. 244
Money and Markets	p. 245
Social Networks: Rational Versus Organic Group Membership	p. 248
Summary	p. 251
Thinking About Modernity and Postmodernity	p. 254
Simulacrum and Hyperreality	p. 255
Reflexivity and the Fragmenting of the Self	p. 257
Fusing the I and the Me	p. 258
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 260
Seeing Gender: Harriett Martineau and Charlotte Perkins Gilman	p. 263
Waves of Feminism	p. 264
Harriet Martineau-Gender and Democracy	p. 267
Theorist's Digest	p. 268
Concepts and Theory: Observing Society	p. 268
Morals and Manners	p. 269
Preparing the Observer	p. 271
Safeguarding Observations	p. 272
Concepts and Theory: Gender and Democracy	p. 273
Gender and Family	p. 273
The Cultural Logic of Gender	p. 274
Workforce Participation	p. 275
Concepts and Theory: Religion, Education, and Democracy	p. 277
Religious Forms	p. 277
Religious Forms and Democracy	p. 278
Conditions of Religion	p. 278
Education and Freedom	p. 279
Summary	p. 281
Charlotte Perkins Gilman-The Evolution of Gender	p. 282
Theorist's Digest	p. 283
Concepts and Theory: Critical Evolution Theory	p. 284
Functional Evolution	p. 284
Adding Marx	p. 285
Gynaecocentric Theory	p. 286
Concepts and Theory: Dynamics of Social Evolution	p. 287
Morbid Excess in Sex Distinction	p. 289
Sexuo-Economic Effects	p. 291
Summary	p. 294
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 295
Seeing Race: Frederick Douglass and W. E. B. Du Bois	p. 299
Race Literature	p. 300
Frederick Douglass-The American Discourse of Race	p. 301
Theorist's Digest	p. 303
Concepts and Theory: The Discourse of Slavery	p. 304
Race as Other	p. 306
Democracy and Universalism	p. 307
Summary	p. 309
W. E. B. Du Bois-The Culture of Race	p. 310
Theorist's Digest	p. 312
Concepts and Theory: The Experience of Oppression and Critical Knowledge	p. 312
Standpoint of the Oppressed	p. 313
Concepts and Theory: Cultural Oppression	p. 315
Exclusion From History	p. 315
Representation	p. 316
Stereotypes and Slippery Slopes	p. 317
Double Consciousness	p. 318
Concepts and Theory: The Dark Nations and World Capitalism	p. 319
The Need for Color	p. 320
Summary	p. 321
Gender and Race: Thinking About Modernity and Postmodernity	p. 322
Modernity and Identity	p. 322
The Postmodern Twist	p. 323
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 325
Seeing Ahead: Defining Moments in Twentieth Century Theory: Talcott Parsons and the Frankfurt School	p. 329
Talcott Parsons: Defining Sociology	p. 330
Parsons's Vision for the Social Sciences	p. 330
Parsons's Theoretical Project	p. 331
Parsons and the Problem of Social Order	p. 333
Voluntaristic Action	p. 334
Patterning Voluntaristic Action	p. 334
The Frankfurt School: The Problem With Sociology	p. 336
Historical Roots	p. 337
The Problem With Positivism: Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno	p. 337
Building Your Theory Toolbox	p. 340
References	p. 341
Photo Credits	p. 351
Index	p. 353
About the Author	p. 379
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