Socy Flashcards
final (19 cards)
What is sociological theory?
A framework of ideas used to understand, explain, and sometimes predict social behavior and structures.
Ritzer describes it as a set of ‘big ideas’ that have stood the test of time, have broad application to social life, and tackle central societal issues.
What social force impacted sociology after the French Revolution?
Political Revolutions
Post-French Revolution led to social chaos and a need for order and stability, influencing thinkers like Comte.
What was the impact of the Industrial Revolution on society?
Shift from agriculture to industry resulted in urbanization, exploitation, and a class divide.
Factories in 1800s England exemplify this shift, similar to today’s Amazon warehouses.
How did capitalism affect social structures?
Created vast inequalities with wealth concentration and labor exploitation.
Gig economy workers, such as those in Swiggy and Uber, reflect the capitalist imbalance.
What is urbanization’s effect on personal connections?
City life alters personal connections, leading to more impersonal and fragmented relationships.
Moving from a village to a city like Mumbai illustrates this change.
What role did religious change play in sociology?
Secularization challenged old moral codes, leading sociology to study religion’s new social role.
Durkheim examined religion beyond mere belief.
What did the Enlightenment promote?
Rationality, progress, and individual rights.
Thinkers like Rousseau and Marx believed in education reform to uplift society.
What beliefs characterize the Conservative Reaction?
Tradition, stability, hierarchy, and anti-revolution.
Thinkers such as Bonald and Maistre supported patriarchal family systems and religious schooling.
Who is associated with Conflict Theory?
Karl Marx
His key idea is that history is driven by class struggle between capitalists and workers.
What does alienation refer to in Marx’s theory?
Workers lose control over work, product, and self in capitalist systems.
Swiggy drivers exemplify this alienation.
What are social facts according to Emile Durkheim?
Society has its own reality that shapes individual behavior.
Durkheim studied how modernity weakens collective bonds.
What does anomie refer to?
Normlessness in periods of rapid change.
An example is students feeling lost during the sudden transition to online learning in COVID.
What does Max Weber mean by rationalization?
Modern life is ruled by rational systems like bureaucracy and laws.
This leads to efficiency but also to dehumanization, termed the ‘iron cage.’
What is the ‘blasé attitude’ described by Georg Simmel?
Emotional numbness fostered by urban life.
An example is avoiding eye contact in crowded public spaces for mental self-protection.
What was Harriet Martineau’s contribution to sociology?
She systematically observed morals, manners, and gender roles.
Martineau highlighted women’s invisibility in social science.
What is Social Darwinism as proposed by Herbert Spencer?
Society evolves through ‘survival of the fittest.’
This idea was historically used to justify colonialism but is now viewed as flawed.
What is one theme in classical sociological theory related to work-life disconnection?
Alienation
An example includes tech burnout from coding long hours without meaning.
Fill in the blank: The bonds that hold society together are known as _______.
Social Solidarity
What is a real-life example of rationalization?
Online tests where algorithms grade students without human input.
