Foundations of Sociological Thought (lecture 2-4) Flashcards
Theory
conceptual explanation of empirical data; identifies underlying principle that governs real outcomes
(essentially tells us what to look for when we are looking for data)
Great Chains of Being
mediaeval theory: everything that exists could be ranked
• rocks and stones (bottom)–>plants—>animals—->humans—->god
• social inequality= justified by god (and god’s order)
State of Nature Arguments
- thought-experiment of what human society would be like without any gov
- suggests there are no natural hierarchies—> inequality is created (unnatural, and shouldn’t be taken for granted)
Karl Marx
- founder of critical theory
- goal to explain inequality and exploitation WITHIN a social system
- the social system is bad because it leads to social instability (btwn classes) not bc it’s unfair
Critical Theory
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assumes society contains unjust inequalities (imbalance) between groups engaged in constant struggle for power and control
(reasoning for inequality in terms of social structure or group strategies)
• aim to change society to reduce inequality and domination
Conflict Theory
type of critical theory–> analyzes ad explains social conflicts (there MUST be groups struggling for position against one another)
• defines certain opposed groups, why they come into conflict and who wins
• power relations between social groups
Marx’s conflict theory
•structural explanation
- proletariat (workers) don’t have resources to make their own living, bourgeoisie (owners/boss) have these resources
- bc workers don’t have the resources, they must obey the person who pays them
Class (Marx)
- position is determined by whether you own the MEANS OF PRODUCTION required to live
- is people own most of the means of production, everyone else must work for them
Power (Max Weber)
• control of sources of power
any social resource that allows you to get what you want regardless of the opposition of others
3 areas of conflict and struggle for position (defined by Weber)
- Class- defined by raw wealth
- Status- defined by honour or social esteem (struggle for the respect of others that allows for certain privileges)
- Political Power- control of political or other resources for achieving you will, regardless of opposition of others
Power Elite (Oligarchy) (C. Wright Mills)
small, relatively homogenous dominant social groups that controls the important positions (levers of power); often hides its influence and restricts who can join
(ie: like a country club)
Vertical Mosaic (John Porter)
describes the power hierarchy in Canada; vertical hierarchy of racial or ethnic groups
• Canadians aren’t relatively equal as previously thought, but families of British origin continue to control most power
Ascribed Status
status or social rank based on unchangeable or inborn characteristics (ie: race, gender)
Achieved Status
status or social rank that you have ‘earned’ by your actions; in theory, anyone could gain or lose this rank or position
Closure (theory)
Frank Parkin
strategy used by dominant groups to prevent access to rewards by others (ie: ‘only white protestant males can join this private club’)
• protects monopolies or power and social connections (maintain position with restrictions)
Ideological Hegemony (Antonio Gramsci)
ability of ruling class to set values, norms and cultural standards for their society • comes from control of intellectuals, who help shape minds of dominated classes
Symbolic Insteractionism
explains society by the meanings that individuals in society attach to their actions, and the way interactions between individuals are governed by these meanings
• why are they doing what they are doing?
Social Actions (Weber)
action oriented towards shared meanings and actions of others
4 ways to understand the driving force behind social action (Weber)
*most actions will include more than one of these orientation
- 1&2 involve explicit explanation by their action (effectiveness or belief)
- 3&4 don’t involve much thought or reasoning by the individual
1) Instrumental rationality: individual calculates how to achieve a goal most efficiently (max. efficiency)
2) Value rationality: actions is determined by BELIEF in a moral or other value, regardless of practicality (doing what YOU think is good)
3) Affectual behaviour: action is determined by EMOTIONAL responses (instinctual)
4) Traditional behaviour: action is performed our of HABIT bc that’s what I/we have always done (learnt)
Methodological Individualism
explaining broad features of society by FIRST understanding what INDIVIDUALS do, and seeing how millions of such actions produce social consequences
Iron Cage (Weber)
individual motivations have been transformed into an objective social system
• sum total of many actions creates the social world as a whole
Symbolic Interactionism (Herbert Blumer)
theoretical paradigm focused on microsociological interactions between individuals
• symbolic meanings we attach to objects in the world and our actions
Dramaturgical Method (Erving Goffman)
understanding individuals as ‘actors’ portraying specific ‘roles’ in interactions
• individuality is expressed in terms of certain pre-existing social roles (expected to behave in certain ways and to meet these expectations)
Normal
general set of characteristics that society treats as the ‘default’ or things we are all presumably aspiring to be
• by acting ‘normally’ we can ensure a successful social interaction
