Class notes
SOC1101
- Course
- Institution
SOC11o1 lecture notes
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
pawneezboronkiani
Content preview
SOC1101 LECTURE NOTESWEEK 1
THE SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION
What is Sociology?
• Sociology is the systematic study of human society and social interactions
• Latin Socius
o Social, being with others
o Greek logos
What do Sociologists do?
• They notice/study social patterns
• They investigate and challenge commonly held assumptions
o Ex. The common assumption surrounding male nurses being feminine or a homosexual
• Sociology enables us to understand the world we live in
• Gives us an intellectual solution break down commonly held assumption
Sociological Imagination:
(Mills, 1954)
• The ability to see the relationship between personal experiences and the larger society
o He argued for when we created and shared sociological knowledge, it showed how
society works in terms of our own personal life
• Enables us to understand how our personal troubles are related to larger social trends/events
o Making it public issues
o Ex. Corporate downsizing, housing bubbles, confinements, Covid-19
o Ex. Coffee: Is a public matter
▪ Implies a cultural setting
▪ Socially significant
▪ Socially acceptable
▪ Implies an extensive social division of labour and a complex social organization
▪ Implies the world history, economics and politics of coffee
WEEK 2
ORIGIN OF SOCIOLOGY
Sociology is the systematic study of human society and social integration
Why was Sociology invented?
Classical Philosophers/social thinkers:
• Confucius
• Plato
, • Aristotle
• Ibn Khaldun
• Shakespeare
• Montesquieu
o Wanted to imagine the ideal society, however they could not
Social Change and Sociology:
• Spread throughout the western world
• 19th Century
The Three Revolutions
• Scientific Revolution
• Industrial Revolution
o From agriculture and handmade products to manufacturing and related industries
• Urbanization
o Population moving from rural areas to cities
Emerge of many new social problems:
• Anonymity
• Isolation
• Inadequate housing
• Crowded cities
• Unsanitary and unhealthy work and living conditions
• Homelessness
• High rates of poverty
• Pollution
• Criminal behaviour
• Popular discontent among the working class
o No unions during this time
o Strikes, protest, social uprising, angry mobs clashing with the police/army
Famous Novels from the 19th century:
• Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables
• Emile Zola's Germinal
• Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist
• Herman Melville’s novels
Political/Democratic Revolution:
• Changes in political thought
o Society as the product of individual self interest
o New political climate: individual freedom and rights
• The French Revolution
, o Introduction of a new principle into history by demanding political action to redress mass
poverty
▪ Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity
o Showed that social change was possible
Early Sociologists:
• How/ why societies change
• What are the social forces holding societies together to create order and stability over time
Suicide as a Social Fact:
• Social distribution of suicide and its rate among different groups and countries
o For any given country, the suicide rate is stable overtime
o Differs widely among them
• Britain > 2X Italy
• Denmark > 4X Britain
• Social Integration
o Categories of people with strong social ties had low suicide rates; more socially isolated
or individualistic people had higher suicide rates
WEEK 3
MAJOR THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES IN SOCIOLOGY
Auguste Comte (1798-1957):
• Coined the word Sociology
o Preferred the term Social Physics
• Sought to do a science of society
• Wanted to discover the laws of society
o Use this to solve social problems
o Believed that society confirmed to laws of its own
• Social statics (order and stability) and dynamics (conflict and change)
• Sociology was modelled after physics
Emile Durkheim (1858-1917):
• Created the first rules of methods of sociology
• Brought sociology to the University
o Created the first chair in sociology at la Sorbonne in Paris
• Trained the first students in the discipline
• Created the first academic sociological journal, L’annee sociologique (1898)
• Upset at the lack of intelligence
• Disturbed by antisemitism (he was Jewish)
o Society is more than the sum of its parts:
▪ Has a unique character of its own; not reducible to the behaviour of anyone
o Social Facts
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller pawneezboronkiani. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $12.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
77254 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now