Sociology

1. Sociology I
Overview of Unit 1: Introduction
(a) Sociology: Growth, scope, definition
(b)Relationship with law
(c) Law as a tool of social engineering
• Emile Durkheim
• Max Weber
• DEAN Roscoe Pound
• Jeremy Bentham

2. 1.Emergence of Sociology
Sociology is the byproduct of three major events that had
happened in the West. The West here doesn’t mean the United
State of America but primarily means the Western Europe. We
are talking about Great Britain, France, further south like Italy,
Spain, we would perhaps include Denmark as well. It is
important to know that in the contemporary world, the West is
different from what we think of the west during 17th-18th century.
We are not concerned about physical or geographical location,
now, we are talking about a concept.
The three events include:
1) The Enlightenment
2) The Industrial Revolution
3) The French Revolution
These events are so important with regard to the creation of the field
of sociology

3. 2. Origins of Sociology in India
Growth of sociology as a discipline is a product of
western intellectual discourse. However, writings about
society can be traced back to the ancient Indian
mythological, religious and spiritual texts such as the
Veda, Upanishads, Puranas, writings of Kautilya and so
on. This provides valuable insights to the discipline of
sociology. Besides these, during the Colonial period,
British officials made earnest effort to study the social
life and culture of people of India.

4. 2.1 Emergence of Sociology in India
• Pioneers of Sociology
Sociology took root in the 1800s primarily in England,
France and Germany. These countries were most
affected by the industrial revolution and enlightenment.
Like today, the early sociologists believed that through
the collection of data, observations and scientific
research we could predict future social trends and
behaviours to improve society.
Some of the early European thinkers include;
‐ Auguste Comte (1798-1857)
‐ Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)
‐ Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
‐ Max Weber (1864-1920)
‐ Karl Marx (1818-1883)

5. 3. What is Sociology?
4. Why Study Sociology
Sociology can give you a new perspective on
yourself and the world around you. It is called the
sociological perspectives.
By adopting the sociological perspective you can
look beyond commonly held beliefs to determine
hidden meanings behind actions.
The sociological perspective can help us view the
world through the eyes of others.
By developing this perspective we can begin to
use the SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION; the
ability to see a connection between the larger
world and one’s personal life.

6. 5. Sociological Perspectives
• There are three major classical approaches to the study of
society.
‐ Functional Perspective; Comte, Spencer and Durkheim
were some of the contributors to this theory. They view
society as a set of interrelated parts that work together to
produce a stable environment.
‐ Conflict Perspective; They focus on the forces in society
that promote competition and change. Karl Marx was one of
the pioneers to this theory.
‐ Interactionist Perspective: They focus on how individuals
interact with each other and their outcomes. The
interactionists also focus on the role that symbols play in
our daily lives. George Herbert Mead, Max Weber and
Herbert Blumer have all made several contributions to the
perspective.

7. 6. Is Sociology a Science
7. Sociology not a Science
8. Nature of Sociology
According to Robert Stead sociology is a social science and
not a natural science, because it deals with human beings
and social phenomena
Sociology is a science of generalization and not that of
particularization;
Sociology as an independent science;
Sociology is a categorical and not normative science;
Sociology is a pure science and not applied science;
Sociology is both categorical and rational science;
Sociology is an abstract and not a concrete science;
Sociology is both empirical and rational science;

8. 9. Subject Matter of Sociology
Ever since the beginning of sociology, sociologists have shown a
great concern in man and in the dynamics of society. Eventually
sociologists have developed different approaches from time to time
in their attempts to enrich its study.
10. Scope of Sociology
Scope of sociology means area of study, field of inquiry or the
subject matter. Study of sociology is organized within a specific
boundary which is known as the scope of sociology. Without a
demarcated boundary, it is very difficult to study a subject
systematically. However, there is no consensus on the part of
sociologists on the issue of scope of sociology
There are two main schools of thought among sociologists on the issue
of scope.
1) Formalistic school or specialist school
2) Synthetic school

9. 11. Sociology in relationship with social sciences
 Sociology and psychology
 Sociology and history
 Sociology and political science
 Sociology and economics
 Sociology and law

10. 12. Sociology and common sense
13. Sociological Imagination-C. Wright Mills
14. Law and Society
 Concept of law
 Functions of law
 Sociological jurisprudence

11. 15. Thinkers
(a)Emile Durkheim
What is social facts?
Division of labour
 Mechanical solidarity or Primitive society
 Organic solidarity
Suicide; Types of suicide
 Egoistic
 Altruistic
 Anomie
 Fatalistic

12. (b)Max Weber
Social action
Power and Authority
Types of authority
 Traditional authority
 Charismatic authority
 Legal rational authority

13. (c)DEAN Roscoe Pound
Social engineering
Theory of law
 Private or individual interests
 Public interest
 Social interest
(d)Jeremy Bentham
(e)Marc Galanter