School College University

1. Lecture 2: General Sociology
Uzair Gul

2. Recommended
Readings
(Syllabus)

3. Recommended Readings (Class)
•Sociology by John J. Macionis
•Pakistani Society by Akbar Ahmad, S.

4. I. Individual: Sociability or the Sociality of
Man.
• “He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because he is
sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god.” –Aristotle
• Man is by nature a social animal. There is an innate drive within him
that seeks social connection and the company of his fellow beings.
This inherent tendency of man is known as sociability.
• The connections or the relationships that he establishes owing to this
instict can be categorized as the sociality of man.

5. Culture
• Every society has a unique culture. It is culture, in fact, that differentiates one
society from another.
• Culture: The shared and socially transmitted ideas, values and beliefs which
generate human behavior and are, in turn, reflected within that behavior. Culture
thus consists of the unconscious standards by which society operates (Oxford
Handbook of Sociology, 2014).
• According to sociology, culture does not develop randomly but is rather partly as
adaptation to local conditions and realities.
• Adaptation: A gradual process by which organisms adjust to the environment
they inhabit (for example, vehicles for mobility)
• Maladaption: An adaptation is maladaptive if it leads to harmful consequences.
An adaptation can be adaptive in the short-term and maladaptive in long-term.
The same is true for environment (for example, climate change)

6. Types of Culture (Physicality)
• Material Culture: The type of culture that
concerns physical and material objects produced
or utilized by a society. (For example, weapons,
statues, paintings, piercings, etc.)
• Non-material Culture: Non-material culture
includes ideas, beliefs, social roles, rules, ethics,
and attitudes of a society. (For example,
Burushaski)

7. Types of Culture (Appeal)
• High Culture: They type of culture that is perceived to
be the pinnacle or creative achievement, and thus to
have a higher status in society (for example, classical
music, opera and ballet).
• Marxism: Bourgeois culture
• Post-colonialism: European culture
• Popular Culture: Popular culture refers to cultural
products manufactured in modern capitalist societies
which are produced for mass consumption, the aim
being to reach a wide audience typically with the aim of
making a profit. (For example, Coke Studio)

8. Elements of Culture
• Norms: Social rules of brules or (Don’t lie to your parents)
• Values: The standards that underpin rules of behavior (Honesty)
• Beliefs: Ideas common to a culture that govern behavior within it
(Honor is important)
• Customs: Social traditions that are passed down through generations
and are unique to a given culture (Taweez)
• Sanctions: Prohibitions in any culture (Homosexuality)

9. Characteristics of Culture
• Culture is learned (Enculturation)
• Culture is shared (language, religion, etc)
• Culture is variable (Pakistan of 2010s vs 2020s)
• Culture is transmitted (modernization)
• Culture is social (Culture and society)
• Culture is dynamic (movement and change)
• Culture is adaptive (new technologies)

10. Functions of Culture
• Culture facilitates the transfer of knowledge. (Language, traditions,
etc.)
• Culture helps humans define and navigate social situations. (Death,
birth, marriage, etc.)
• Culture provides established behavioral patterns. (CSS, scholarship)
• Culture moulds and influences human personality. (Pashtun honor
culture)

11. Culture and Socialization/Transmission
• Socialization: The process by which individuals acquire the values,
habits, and attitudes of a society. It is the primary vehicle for the
transmission of culture.
• Formal Socialization: Formal socialization takes place in a structured
environment, a school for example.
• Informal Socialization: Informal socialization is the learning that takes
place outside of a formal structure. For example, peers or media.

12. Cultural Relativism
• Cultural relativism is the principle of regarding the beliefs, values, and
practices of a culture from the viewpoint of that culture itself.
• Example: Ethnographies

13. Ethnocentrism/Xenocentrism
• Evaluation of other cultures according to preconceptions originating
in the standards and customs of one’s own culture.
• For example, orientalism

14. Subculture
• A cultural group within a larger culture, often having beliefs or
interests at variance with those of the larger culture.
• For example, Hazara subculture

15. Cultural Lag
• Cultural lag is a theoretical phenomenon that transpires when
changes or advancements in material culture take place before (or at
a faster rate of progression than) changes in non-material culture.
• Cars and Traffic Rules

16. Multiculturalism
• Multiculturalism is the idea that distinct identities and cultural groups
should be acknowledged, preserved, and supported in society.
Multiculturalism, thus, seeks to tackle the challenges that arise out of
cultural diversity and minority marginalisation.
• Canada is an example of a multicultural society.

17. Acculturation and Assimilation
• Acculturation refers to the adaptation process that occurs when two
or more cultures come into contact. It most commonly happens when
migrants move to a new culture, and involves adopting new beliefs,
behaviors, and forms of culture of the dominant group in the new
culture.
• Assimilation is a more extreme form of cultural change and involves
the complete adoption of the dominant culture as well as the
rejection of the previous culture.

18. Past Questions on Culture
• 7. What is meant by society? Discuss its types in detail. Also, define culture
and what is the difference between material and non-material in social
culture? (CSS 2023)
Q8. Write notes on the following (CSS 2022)
a) Social functions of religion
b) b) Cultural Relativism
Q2. Many scholars argue that the contemporary world we live in is
predominantly dominated by global culture. Do you agree that we live in a
society with a global culture, provide examples for your arguments? (CSS
2021)