Lingnan University Department of Sociology and Social Policy SOC201 Classical Sociological Theory 1st Term,

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1 1 Lingnan University Department of Sociology and Social Policy SOC201 Classical Sociological Theory 1st Term, Instructor: Professor Peter Baehr Room WYL 209; Tel ; Recommended Study Year : 2 No. of Credits/ Term : 3 Mode of Tuition : Lecture-Tutorial Class Contact Hours : Three hours per week Category in Major Prog : Stream Elective Discipline : Sociology Prerequisite(s) : (a) SOC101 Introduction to Sociology, or (b) Grade D or above in AL Sociology, or (c) CUS106 The Marking of Modern Culture Co-requisite(s) : None Exclusion(s) : None Exemption Requirements(s) : None Brief Course Description All of the social sciences celebrate thinkers who have made a fundamental contribution to their disciplines. This course introduces you to three major thinkers of sociology - Karl Marx, Max Weber and Emile Durkheim - and the traditions of social thought they helped to establish. These authors are typically regarded as classical thinkers because they helped establish the key coordinates of sociology as a discipline. Sociological classics are not timeless, nor are they an authoritative guide to many modern problems. Nonetheless, they do provide some vital intellectual resources for the student of society; people who think that they can dispense with the classics would be best advised to understand them first. I will suggest that each of these thinkers offer complementary insights into modern society, and into the methods with which it is best studied.

2 2 Aims This course has four chief aims. First, it will be historical, locating the classical authors in the events and movements of their time. Second, it will be comparative; the thought of the classics authors on specific issues will be analyzed and similarities and differences traced. Third, the course will be applied, examining the classics pertinence for contemporary social problems. Finally, it will attempt to reveal salient continuities between classical and modern social theory. Learning Outcomes Upon successful completion of this course, students 1. Will be able to identify the foundational theories of sociology 2. Will be able speak and write clearly on the three major theorists covered in this course 3. Will be able to recognize the variety of sociological approaches to social life and assess their potential (or lack of it) to shed light on enduring issues of social integration and social cleavage. Assessment of Learning Outcomes The above learning outcomes will be assessed, respectively, by 1. Requiring students to write a term paper (30%) on at least one of the classical sociological authors, and write an examination (40%) that encompasses two or more of them 2. Tutorial group presentations (20%). Class participation, measured by the instructors notes on attendees, will earn up to a further 10% 3. Regular instructor feed-back sessions throughout the term to gauge student comprehension. Hence: Continuous Assessment (tutorial presentation, class participation, term paper) = 60% NOTE: THE TERM PAPER IS DUE AT 5.00 ON NOVEMBER 29TH Examination = 40% NOTE: THE EXAM WILL BE HELD IN CLASS ON THE LAST LECTURE OF THIS COURSE DECEMBER 6 TH

3 3 Good Practices 1. The instructor will be regularly available to see students, talk to them by phone and communicate with them through 2. The instructor will return all student work within two weeks of its submission 3. Students will attend all classes of this course and do so on time 4. Students will produce the work that is required of them on the day that it is required 5. Students and the instructor will create a respectful atmosphere in which plural and contrasting views can be expressed Indicative Content A) Introduction Origins of Sociology; the nature and purpose of classical sociological theory B) Karl Marx Marx s Life and Times; Theory of Alienation The Materialist Conception of History Classes and Revolution Marx s Legacy C) Max Weber Weber s Life and Times; Theory of the origins and nature of modern capitalism The Three Types of Rulership Class, Status Groups, Parties Sociological Method; Weber s Legacy D) Emile Durkheim Durkheim s Life and Times; Sociology as a Science

4 4 Types of solidarity and the division of labour Suicide The religion of society; Durkheim s Legacy E) Conclusions The Nature of Classicality Continuities: Modern Sociological Theory Particularly Relevant Reading: Marx, Karl, Karl Marx: Selected Writings, (ed. David McLellan) Oxford, Oxford University Press, (Hereafter referred to as K. Marx, Selected Writings.) Weber, Max, From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology (eds. H.H. Gerth and C.W. Mills), London: Routledge, (Hereafter referred to as Gerth and Mills.) Durkheim, E. Durkheim, Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings (ed. A. Giddens), Cambridge University Press. Aron, Raymond, Main Currents in Sociological Thought, Vol.1 & 2, Harmondworth: Penguin, These two volumes are probably the best books ever written on the sociological tradition. They cover, with great lucidity, not only Marx, Durkheim and Weber but also Montesquieu, Tocqueville, Comte and Pareto. (Chinese version in the Library under the French title Les étapes de la pensée sociologique.) Bottomore, Tom and Robert Nisbet, A History of Sociological Analysis. This is an edited collection that contains many useful essays on key thinkers and topics. A number of the essays are referenced in the reading. (Hereafter referred to as Bottomore and Nisbet) Collins, Randall, Four Sociological Traditions, Oxford: Oxford University Press, Another excellent book; clear and rigorous. Giddens, Anthony, Capitalism and Modern Social Theory, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Tough going in parts but sophisticated and subtle. (Herafter referred to as Giddens ) Morrison, Ken, Marx, Durkheim, Weber: Formations of Modern Social Thought, London: Sage, The book that many students of

5 5 classical sociological theory find the clearest. (Hereafter referred to as Morrison ) Page references are to the second edition Supplementary Readings Baehr, Peter, Founders, Classics, Canons, New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction, Calhoun, Craig, et al. (eds.), Classical Sociological Theory, Malden, Mass: Blackwell Pub Frisby, David, Sociological Impressionism: A Reassessment of Georg Simmel s Social Theory, London: Routledge, Mouzelis, N.P., Back to Sociological Theory: The Construction of Social Orders, New York: St. Martin s Press, Parkin, Frank. Durkheim, Oxford: Oxford University Press, Parkin, Frank. Max Weber, London: Tavistock, 1982 Ritzer, George, Classical Sociological Theory, 2nd ed., N.Y.: McGraw-Hill, Scott, John, Sociological Theory: Contemporary Debates, London: Aldershot, Stones, Rob (ed.), Key Sociological Thinkers, London: Macmillan Press, Turner, Charles, Investigating Sociological Theory, London: Sage, Turner, Jonathan, The Structure of Sociological Theory, N.Y.: Wadsworth Company, Turner, Jonathan, Leonard Beeghley & Charles H. Powers, The Emergence of Sociological Theory, 6th ed., Singapore: Thomson Wadsworth, Most of the reading can be found in the Library Reserve section as 3-hour items. When preparing for your presentations and term papers, you are advised to acquire your reading well in advance.

6 6 DETAILED COURSE DESCRIPTION LECTURES Lecture of September 13: Introduction: Origins and distinctiveness of sociology. What is society? Lecture of September 20 Karl Marx ( ): the context of his life and thought. Marx s early writings: labour, alienation and praxis. Reading Giddens, chap. 1: Morrison, pp ; K. Marx, Selected Writings, Part I, esp. chapter 8.; S. Avineri, Social and Political Thought of Karl Marx, chaps. 1-5; and D. McLellan, Marx Before Marxism, esp. chaps. 4-8; Bertell Ollman, Alienation; George Ritzer, The McDonaldization of Society. Lecture of September 27: The historical materialist conception of history; the general schema of development; the base-superstructure model; the class theory of the state. Ideology and false consciousness. Reading (on the Marxian theory of history and class) Giddens, chaps. 2 and 3; Morrison, pp ; Edward G. Grabb, Theories of Social Inequality, chap. 2; K. Marx, Selected Writings, Part III, chap. 18, Part IV, chap. 30; G. de Ste. Croix, The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World, Chap. 2, sections i, ii and iii, and G. de Ste. Croix, Class in Marx s conception of history; ancient and modern, New Left Review 146 July/August 1984, pp ; Tom Bottomore, Marxism and Sociology, chapter 4 of Bottomore and Nisbet: Randall Collins, Four Sociological Traditions, pp Lecture of October 4: Capital: Marx s mature investigations into the structure and dynamic of the capitalist mode of production; exploitation and the theory of surplus-value; contradiction, crisis-tendencies and the emergence of communism.

7 7 Reading Giddens, chap. 4; Morrison, pp ; K. Marx, Selected Writings, Part IV, chap. 32; Terrell Carver, The Postmodern Marx, chapters 2-6; R.G. Rajan, Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World Economy, Introduction and Chapters 1 and 4; Murray Smith (2008), Causes and the Consequences of the Global Economic Crisis: A Marxist-Socialist Analysis, Lecture of October 11: Max Weber ( ): the context of his life and thought. Class, status-groups and parties; the theory of social closure. Weber s political sociology: the three types of legitimate domination ; politics and ethics. Reading Giddens, chap. 11; Morrison, pp ; Gerth and Mills, chapters 4 and 7; F. Parkin, Max Weber, chapters 3 and 4; Frank Parkin, Marxism and Class Theory: A Bourgeois Critique (chapters 4, 5 and 6 deal with social closure ); Frank Parkin Social Stratification, chapter 15 of Bottomore and Nisbet. R. Aron, Main Currents in Sociological Thought Vol. 2, pp ; Economy and Society Vol. II Appendix II ( Parliament and government in a reconstructed Germany ); W. J. Mommsen, The Age of Bureaucracy, esp. pp ; Randall Collins, Four Sociological Traditions, pp Lecture of October 18: Rationalisation, Protestantism and the uniqueness of the west. Reading Giddens, chap. 9 and pp ; Morrison, , , ; M. Weber, Author s Introduction to The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism; M. Weber, General Economic History, Part 4; M. Weber, The Protestant sects and the spirit of capitalism, in Gerth and Mills, chap. 12; F. Parkin, Max Weber, chap. 2; Randall Collins, Weber s Last Theory of Capitalism in Collins Weberian Sociological Theory, chapter 2; Lawrence A. Scaff (1989) Fleeing the Iron Cage: Culture, Politics and Modernity in the Thought of Max

8 8 Weber, chapter 6. Lecture of October 25: Weber s interpretive sociology; the ideal-type; science and its limitations; modernity, conflict and life-spheres ; eroticism as an escape from rationalization. Reading Giddens, chaps. 10 and 11; Morrison, pp ; Gerth and Mills, chap. 5 ( Science as a vocation ) and chap. 8 ( Religious rejections of the world and their directions ); Raymond Aron, Main Currents in Sociological Thought Vol. 2, chapter on Max Weber; Lawrence A. Scaff, Fleing the Iron Cage: Culture, Politics and Modernity in the Thought of Max Weber, chap. 3; Guy Oakes, Weber and Rickert: Concept Formation in the Cultural Sciences, pp. 1-40; Lecture of November 1: Emile Durkheim ( ): the context of his life and thought. The rules of sociological method. The social and the moral. Reading Giddens, chaps. 5 and 6; Morrison, pp ; Edward Tiryakian, Emile Durkheim, chapter 6 of Bottomore and Nisbet; R. Aron, Main Currents in Sociological Thought Vol 2, chapter on Durkheim; Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings, pp ; Emile Durkheim, The Rules of Sociological Method (read it all; the text is short); F. Parkin, Durkheim, chap. 1; K. Thompson, Emile Durkheim, pp , ; and R. Bendix, Two sociological traditions, in R. Bendix and G. Roth, Scholarship and Partisanship [Bendix s essay contrasts Weber and Durkheim]; Jean Terrier, Visions of the Social, chapter 4 ( In Us, but Not of Us : The Location of Society According to Durkheim.)

9 9 Lecture of November 8: Suicide and Mental Life: Guest Lecture by Professor Liah Greenfeld (Boston University, Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Sociology, Lingnan University) Reading Giddens, pp ; Morrison, pp ; E. Durkheim, Suicide; K. Thompson, Emile Durkheim, pp ; S. Lukes, Emile Durkheim: His Life and Work, chap. 9; Raymond Aron, Main Currents in Sociological Thought Vol 2, pp Howard I. Kushner & Claire E. Sterk (2005) The Limits of Social Capital: Durkheim, Suicide, and Social Cohesion, American Journal of Public Health 95(7), pp [for an alternative view of Durkheim s work, with discussion on fatalistic & altruistic suicide] +Wu Fei (2010) Suicide and Justice: A Chinese Perspective, Routledge, especially Ch 1 & 10 [Insightful perspectives; with discussion on rural Chinese women.] + David Cook and Olivia Allison (2007) Understanding and Addressing Suicide Attacks: The Faith and Politics of Martyrdom Operations. +Paul S.F. Yip (2008) Suicide in Asia: Causes and Prevention, Hong Kong University Press [with statistical data and discussion on older persons] + Online statistical database on Hong Kong s suicide figures, with category breakdown for (URL: Compiled by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, University of Hong Kong. November 15 is Congregation: No Lecture Lecture of November 22: Durkheim on solidrity and conflict: from mechanical to organic solidarity; the forced division of labour. Durkheim s political sociology. Reading On solidarity and conflict:

10 10 Giddens, chap. 5; Morrison, ; Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings, pp ; F. Parkin, Durkheim, chap. 1; and K. Thompson, Emile Durkheim, pp ; S. Lukes, Emile Durkheim: His Life and Work, chap. 7; Raymond Aron, Main Currents in Sociological Thought Vol 2, pp ; Randall Collins, Four Sociological Traditions, chapter 3 ( The Durkheimian Tradition ); Jean Terrier, Visions of the Social, chapter four ( In Us, but Not of Us : The Location of Society According to Durkheim.) Also: Philip Carl Salzman, The Middle East s Tribal DNA, Middle East Quarterly 15 (1) 2008; on the web at: And: Xu Feng (2008), Gated Communities and Migrant Enclaves: the Conundrum for Building Harmonious Community/ Shequ, Journal of Contemporary China 17(57) On Durkheim s political sociology: Giddens, pp ; Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings, pp , ; Emile Durkheim, Elementary Forms of Religious Life, chap. 7; F. Parkin, Durkheim, chaps. 3 and 4; and K. Thompson, Emile Durkheim, pp ; S. Lukes, Emile Durkheim: His Life and Work, chaps. 11, 13 and 23. Lecture of November 29: The nature of classical theory; revision December 6: FINAL EXAM IN CLASS

11 11 TUTORIALS Tutorials of September 18 and 19: Housekeeping Tutorials of September 25 and 26th ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY; VIEWS OF SOCIAL LIFE How did sociology emerge in Europe within the context of the other social sciences? What contribution did conservative thought make to sociology s emergence? Explain why the concepts of social and society are so difficult to pin down. Reading: Randall Collins, Four Sociological Traditions, pp.3-46 ( Prologue: The Rise of the Social Sciences ). Robert Nisbet, Conservatism, in Bottomore and Nisbet, chapter 3. Jean Terrier, Visions of the Social: Society as a Political Project in France, (Read the Introduction to the book and, if doing the essay, all of it). William Outhwaite, The Future of Society, chapter 1 The Origins of Society. William H. Sewell, Logics of History: Social Theory and Social Transformation, chapter 10 ( Reconfiguring the Social in Social Science: An Interpretive Manifesto ). Tutorials of October 9 and 10 (MARX) Marx argued that capitalist society was a society divided between those who had power and those who lacked power but who were seeking to achieve it. What, according to him, was the basis of this power-division? Does it persist today and, if so, how? (You may consider the Hong Kong and China cases.) Reading: See reading under Lecture of September 27 th. Tutorials of October 16 and 17 (MARX) Many political organizations and social movements are frustrated by the fact that ordinary people do not wish to follow them or take their advice. Key Marxist concepts to explain this lack of responsiveness are ideology and false consciousness and hegemony. Describe what these concepts mean and assess their validity. Find at least two examples to illustrate your view.

12 12 Reading: K. Marx, Selected Writings, chapter 14 ( The German Ideology ), chapter 30 ( Preface to A Critique of Political Economy ). Morrison, pp Jorge Larrain, The Concept of Ideology, chapter 2 ( Marx s theory of ideology ). Steven Lukes, In Defense of False Consciousness, The University of Chicago Legal Forum. (I have the pdf of this and will send to the class.) Steven Lukes, Power: A Radical View, 2 nd. edition, Must be this edition. Chapters 2 and 3. Tom Bottomore (editor), A Dictionary of Marxist Thought. Look up the entries on hegemony and ideology. On hegemony also look up works by and on Antonio Gramsci (e.g. his Prison Notebooks and the discussion of intellectuals and education ). Tutorials on October 30 and 31 WEBER Max Weber argued that politics was an independent force. Though related to economic factors, politics and power were not reducible to them. Examine Weber s key political concepts and seek to apply at least two of them to politics in Hong Kong (e.g. Hong Kong governance, protest movements, relationship between Hong Kong and central government of PRC). Reading: See Reading under Lecture October 11 Tutorials of November 6 and 7 (WEBER) Describe and assess Weber s distinction between politics and science, and his theory of value conflict. Reading: see Reading under Lecture of October 25 th. I am expecting a close reading of Science as a Vocation to be included. Tutorials of November 13 and 14 (DURKHEIM) These tutorials will focus on a broadly Durkheimian approach to mental illness, particularly schizophrenia. Professor Liah Greenfeld (Boston University and Lingnan s Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Sociology) will supply a question and reading soon.

13 13 For the meantime see: Liah Greenfeld, Nationalism and the Mind, chapters 9 ( An Invitation to Dialogue: A Comment on Neuroscience and Culture ), and 11 ( Nationalism and the Mind ). Also see A Student s Introduction to the book, written by Jonathan R. Eastwood. Tutorials of November 20 and 21 (DURKHEIM) Durkheim argued that mechanical solidarity one kind of social cohesion was being increasingly replaced by organic solidarity. Describe what Durkheim meant by these concepts and explain, with examples, what he believed to be the consequences (good and bad) of organic solidarity for modern life. Reading: See reading under Lecture of November 22. Also read: Tutorials of November27 and 28 (CLASSICALITY) We have been reading this term a number of texts we call classic. Now step back from any particular text we have read and answer the following questions: How does one recognize a text as classic? What makes some texts rather than other texts classic? (Or to put this second question another way: what road must a text travel to become a classic?) Reading: Jeffrey Alexander, On the Centrality of the Classics, in A. Giddens and J. Turner, eds., Sociological Theory Today, 1987: Charles Turner, Classic and Canon, chapter 1 of Investigating Sociological Theory. Peter Baehr, Founders, Classics, Canons: Modern Disputes over the Origins and Appraisal of Sociology s Heritage, chapters 4 and 5. Italo Calvino, Why Read the Classics, chapter 1.

14 14 ASSESSMENT A) Tutorial Presentations = 20% Tutorial presentations should be clear, invite discussion and be between 25 and 30 minutes long. They should end with at least two questions posed to the tutorial group for discussion. Attendance in tutorials is mandatory; students who miss tutorials without good reason (explained to me), will have marks deducted from the continuous assessment portion of their grade. B) Participation = 10% All students are expected to contribute to the tutorials by asking questions, by contributing ideas, all underpinned by reading for the course. Term Paper = 30% You can choose a title from the tutorial topics - students should ask me for extra reading but are expected to search for their own or you can formulate your own question provided it is first negotiated with me. Students are not allowed to choose, for the term paper, their tutorial question. Term papers should be around 2000 words, typed, and double-spaced. The deadline is Friday 29 November 2012 at 5.00pm. Please submit one hard copy to my office = WYL 209, plus one soft copy to the online Moodle interface of this course. A so-called rubric for the term paper (guidelines of what constitutes excellence and anything below that) will follow. Term papers must be fully referenced either using footnotes or endnotes. A list of references on the final page of the paper is insufficient. Typically, a term paper will utilize at least eight references, so you must read more than the texts listed below (do your own research in the library!). Cite your sources (references) in detail give the page numbers - and be careful to avoid plagiarism. This means that you must note the sources of quotations, data and general information in the essay. These sources/references should appear in alphabetical order in your list of references/bibliography.

15 15 Please note: According to Lingnan University and Social Sciences Programme policy, plagiarism is "presentation of another person's work without proper acknowledgment of the source". Plagiarism (unattributed copying) will be heavily penalised and may attract a zero mark and disciplinary action. The grading process will involve the use of anti-plagiarism software. Those who need extra help in polishing their written English may make use of the Writing Tutorial Service offered by Lingnan s Centre for English and Additional Languages (CEAL). You can make an appointment via the link End of Term Exam = 40% A comprehensive examination in three parts requiring you to answer questions on Marx, Durkheim and Weber. The exam will take place on Thursday 6 December (Thursday) between 1.00 and 3.00 pm Peter Baehr September 2012

16 16 SOC201 Classical Sociological Theory Tuesday Tutorials (10:30am-11.20am WYL105) Wednesday Tutorials (5.30pm-6.20pm WYL111) Course Schedule 2012/13 first semester Thursday Lectures (1.00pm-3.00pm WYL104) Date Topic Date Topic Date Topic 18 Sep Housekeeping; allocation of student work 25 Sep Origins of Sociology 2 Oct 9 Oct Marx 1 16 Oct Marx 2 23 Oct 30 Oct Weber 1 6 Nov Weber 2 Mid-autumn Festival. No tutorial Chung Yeung Festival. No tutorial 13 Nov Durkheim 1 20 Nov Durkheim 2 27 Nov Classicality 4 Dec Revision 19 Sept Housekeeping; allocation of student work 26 Sept Origins of Sociology 3 Oct No tutorial 10 Oct Marx 1 17 Oct Marx 2 24 Oct No tutorial 31 Oct Weber 1 7 Nov Weber 2 14 Nov Durkheim 1 21 Nov Durkheim 2 28 Nov Classicality 5 Dec Revision 13 Sep 20 Sep Marx 1 27 Sep Marx 2 4 Oct Marx 3 11 Oct Weber 1 18 Oct Weber 2 25 Oct Weber 3 Introduction: Origins of sociological theory 1 Nov Durkheim 1 8 Nov Durkheim 2 15 Nov Congregation. No lecture 22 Nov 29 Nov Durkheim; The Nature of Classic texts. 3 Revision (Term paper due) 6 Dec Final Exam in Class