Date: 24 June 2016

FAMILY AS A BASIC UNIT Sociology Unit V

Abhinand Gopal
AR 6.5 BUILDING ECONOMIES & SOCIOLOGY

COURSE OUTLINE

▸ Family as a basic unit of ‘society’

▸ Differences in lifestyle: geography, religion - caste, income

and their implications in housing unit design

▸ sociological aspects in the history of the evolution of

housing
WHAT IS SOCIOLOGY?

socius + logos = sociology

LATIN GREEK

(companion) + (study)

SCIENTIFIC STUDY
OF SOCIETY,
SOCIAL GROUPS
& INTERACTION
DEFINE SOCIOLOGY

SOCIOLOGY IS THE STUDY OF

SOCIAL LIFE, SOCIAL CHANGE &
SOCIAL CAUSES-CONSEQUENCES
OF HUMAN BEHAVIOUR IN SOCIETY
American Sociological Association
 SOCIETY DEFINITIONS

“society is a social organism possessing

a harmony of structure and function” “society as a reality in its own right”
- August Comte - Emile Durkheim
OTHER SOCIAL SCIENCES

SOCIOLOGY: THE BASIC SOLE SCIENCE

▸ Economics - economic activities in the human society

▸ Anthropology - the study of all aspects of human life &

culture in primitive human societies.

▸ Psychology - study of an individual’s behaviour in the

society

▸ History - the study past of the mankind

▸ Political Science - study about administration & functioning

of government
How have societies changed from ancient past to present?
HOMINID SPECIES

TIMELINE OF HUMAN CIVILISATION

▸ Palaeolithic age ‘old stone age’ (4.5 million years to 10000 BC)

▸ Mesolithic Age ‘middle stone age’ (10,000 BC - 6800 BC)

▸ Neolithic Age ‘new stone age’ (6800 BC - 3000 BC)

▸ Bronze Age (3000 BC - 1200 BC)

▸ Iron Age (1200 BC - 1 AD)

▸ Middle Ages (1 AD - 1400 AD)

▸ Renaissance (1400 - 1700 AD)

▸ Industrial Revolution (1700 - 1914 AD)

▸ Modern (from 20th century - 1990s)

▸ Digital Age (1990s to present)

THE BIG BANG THEORY

13.7 BILLION YEARS AGO, TIME & SPACE

WERE CREATED FROM A POINT
the universe is expanding
SINGLE LAND ROCK WITH FLOATING TECTONICS BENEATH
 Mesopotamia
PANTHALASSA

Egypt

PANGEA

Indus

apes started descending

to the land from trees,
attaining upright posture
200 mil years ago
and rotating the thumb
Plate Tectonics Movement
Paleolithic Age 2.6 million years ago 10,000 BC a period of repeated glaciations, use of most
primitive
tools covering 95% of humans (homo sapiens) history
 World Map at 10000 years ago, after the melting of glaciers
(start of Mesolithic age to 7000 BC)
characterised by: movement of people from caves to plains, river valleys & coastal regions.
TEXT
HOMINID: A PRIMATE FAMILY THAT INCLUDES HUMANS
FIRE FROM STONES AND HARNESSING ENERGY
EARLIER HUMANS

NEANDERTHAL MAN
▸ Found in the Neander Valley in
Germany

▸ Extinct around 25000 years old

▸ ancestors of modern day humans

EARLY CAVE PAINTINGS AS ART & ANIMAL FOOD

Early cave man paintings

EARLY MAN TOOLS MADE OUT OF BONES & STONES

HUNTERS & GATHERERS

HARDNESS OF SURFACES

Early human -

settlements found

in areas with high

seismic activity

forming undulated

rough terrain.
TEXT

collective learning as a group of humans and advancements in language, security & resources
TEXT

houses made out of wood, hay & straw; imitating the caves
TEXT

houses made out of animal bones

& using fire to cook
Cradle of Human Civilisation: Mesopotamia (tool building abilities & first script created)
FACTORS INFLUENCING HUMAN SOCIETY & ARCHITECTURE

▸ natural factors - geography, geology, climate

geography: availability geology: building climate: building design &

of water, fertile soil & materials & orientation, presence of
natural barriers construction fenestrations (doors,
windows)

▸ civilisation factors - religion, social structure, technology &

history of the group, economy
Neolithic Age (6800 BC - 2500BC): New Stone Age
characterised with 1. introduction to agriculture practices 2. living in bands 3. domestication of animals
 agriculture created stable society, promoted
TEXT development & introduced classes; the rich &
the poor, the rulers & the salves
Evolution of
domesticated
animals
Pottery found in Indus valley, what do you infer?
wheels for transportation > pots for storing excess food & long lasting grains > trade & commerce

early Egyptian potter &

introduction of chariots in war
Bronze Age (2500 - 1250 BC)
characterised with 1. metallurgy for art & warfare 2. establishment of social hierarchy 3. permanent houses
Iron Age (1250 - 1 AD)
characterised by 1. gender & social bias 2. building marvels & technology 3. economic divide, military
regimes & colonisation
MASLOW’S THEORY OF HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
Maslow (1943) stated that people are
motivated to achieve certain needs.
When one need is fulfilled, a person
seeks to fulfil the next one & so on
development in building activity &
widening of economic gap in society
SOCIAL LIFE SOCIAL
Society
INSTITUTIONS
Family
Culture
Religion
Groups
Health
Demography
Politics

SOCIOLOGY
the study of human social life

SOCIAL SOCIAL CHANGE

INEQUALITY Collective Behaviour
Race & Ethnicity
Social Movements
Caste Divide
Social Trends
Gender
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS

WE ALL PLAY CERTAIN ROLES IN OUR SOCIETY

Our position in a social institution is described as a status. It is
dependent upon the societal structure, rules, norms & values.

SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS
They are the structures & mechanisms of social order. Cooperation of
a set of individuals within a given human collectivity

Functions:
1. Satisfy the basic needs
2. Establish social behaviour patterns
3. Provide roles for individuals
4. Define social values
5. Support other institutions
MICRO UNIT OF THE SOCIAL SYSTEM

“a family is a social and economic unit consisting minimally of one or

more parents & their children”
- Ember & Ember

Common Features of a family:

1. Form of marriage established & maintained

2. Economic system of duties & obligations

3. Mating & Reproduction

4. A common household/ habitation to live

FAMILY

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS NON-ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

▸ Socialisation ▸ Economy

▸ Reproduction ▸ Religion

▸ Placement in society ▸ Education

▸ Physical Protection

▸ Culture & Recreation

▸ Political Control

▸ Health
TYPES OF FAMILY

Based on structure & size:

1. Nuclear 2. Joint 3. Extended

Based on marriage:
1. Polygamy 2. Monogamy

Based on rules of marriage:

1. Exogamous 2. Endogamous

Based on nature of authority:

1. Patriarchal 2. Matriarchal
Living examples of matrilineal societies in India
Eg: Kerala, Meghalaya & a few NE States
Polygamy
Polyandry
GREEK HOUSES EVOLVED AROUND THE COURTYARD

Kitchen
with
vents

Andron,
Positioned on
place of
lower floor
male
members of
Gynaeceum: place for women recreation the family
Rawla, women quarters, Amber fort, Jaipur

Mardana, men quarters, Mehrangarh Fort

Badgir, windtowers used in Persia
CASTE

each of the hereditary classes of a society, distinguished by relative

degrees of ritual purity or pollution and of social status.
TEXT

Low in number, higher wealth

Higher in number, less wealth

SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS

RELIGION
religion is the study of the beliefs, practices and organizational forms.
TEXT
No one
SOCIAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, ECONOMIC & BIOLOGICAL CAUSES

DEVIANCE
▸ moving away from the accepted
norm, tend to be isolated & private

▸ ‘crime’ is major impediment in the

social order, where judgemental
rules are laid down by social
institutions to prevent crime

▸ tends to violate social norms

▸ formal deviance: rape, theft, murder

etc.

▸ informal deviance: breaking laws

that have not been codified into law
What is the prime aim of social institutions?
 Population v/s density v/s city size
Density
Population City Size
(per sq. km)

1. Tokyo 3.4 crore 8,547 sq kms 4,300

4. Delhi +
2.3 crore 1,943 sq kms 11,500
NCR

13. Mumbai 1.7 Crore 550 sq kms 30,900

16. Dhaka 1.5 Crore 360 sq kms 44,000

Taken from: DEMOGRAPHIA WORLD URBAN AREAS 2012 Edition

Begumpet Airport Indira Amma Slum, Rasoolpura
Evolution of housing based on variation of geography, availability of
materials and functional need

Venustus, Firmitas & Utilitas: Vitruvius concepts, varying the above

Beauty, Structure & Function factors with social interactions
INFERENCES

▸ http://sheltertwc.weebly.com

▸ http://www.ushistory.org/

▸ wiki.commons

▸ https://learn.saylor.org

▸ enotes.com

▸ slideshare.net

▸ http://www.asanet.org

▸ wikipedia .org
INFERENCES

▸ http://www.moyak.com/papers/history-housing.html

▸ https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Introduction_to_Sociology/
Introduction

▸ http://www.slideshare.net/its_just_bm/relevance-of-
sociology-to-architecture

▸ http://www.enotes.com/research-starters/architectural-
sociology

▸ http://www.asanet.org/sites/default/files/savvy/footnotes/
dec02/fn17.html