SOCI1001: Introduction to Sociology

Lecture 3. The Development of Sociological Thinking

Date: September 20, 2023
Course instructor: Dr. HAN, Sinn Won
Logistics

1. Tutorial
• Check your tutorial schedule!

2. Term essay
• Instructions for term essay
will be notified by the first
week of October

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Today’s core agenda:
The development of sociological thinking

● Auguste Comte and the creation of sociology

● Classical sociological theory

● Karl Marx
● Max Weber
● Emile Durkheim
載入中⋯
● American sociology

● Modern sociological theories

● Functionalism, conflict theory, symbolic interactionalism, mid-range theory, postmodernism,
feminist theory, …
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Today’s core agenda:
The development of sociological thinking

● Auguste Comte and the creation of sociology

● Classical sociological theory

● Karl Marx
● Max Weber
● Émile Durkheim
● American sociology

● Modern sociological theories

● Functionalism, conflict theory, symbolic interactionalism, mid-range theory, postmodernism,
feminist theory, …
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Why do we need theories?

載入中⋯

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Why do we need theories?

● A theory aims to provide the most logical explanation about “why” things happen as they
do

● Scientific laws: “Something happens.” | Theories: “Why the thing happens?”

● Usually, there are multiple (and often competing) theories to explain a certain phenomenon

● Competition between theories shields science from becoming unchallenged dogma

● Discredited theories may have value in that they lead to groundbreaking findings

● Theories provide us a systematic framework to better understand social phenomena

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Classical sociological theory

● The “holy trinity” of classical sociological thoughts

● Karl Marx (1818-1883) 慰
● Capital: A Critique of Political Economy (1867)
● The Communist Manifesto (1848, cowritten with Friedrich Engels)

● Max Weber (1864-1920)

● The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1905)
● Economy and Society (1921)

● Émile Durkheim (1858-1917)

● Suicide (1897)
● The Division of Labour in Society (1893) 7
Classical sociological theory

● Marx, Weber, and Durkheim are different in many ways

• Nationality, family background, occupation, theoretical approach, methodology, …

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Classical sociological theory

● Marx, Weber, and Durkheim are different in many ways

• Nationality, family background, occupation, theoretical approach, methodology, …

● But their lives overlapped to a remarkable extent (circa 1850-1900)

• They observed a massive social change that was happening in the Western world:
• A shift from pre-industrial societies to industrial societies in the 19th century

• The Industrial Revolution in Europe, and the subsequent emergence of MODERN CAPITALISM,
was the core motivation of Marx/Weber/Durkheim’s scholarly explorations
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What’s the Industrial Revolution?

● What was the Industrial Revolution? And how did it reshape the Western economy and society?

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What’s the Industrial Revolution?

● Industrial revolution Urbanization Modern industrial capitalism

● Marx
➢ The impacts of capitalism on the individual and society

載入中⋯
➢ The nature of the capitalistic system, and its (destined) future

● Weber
➢ The origins of large-scale modern capitalism
➢ The relationship between bureaucratic administration and modern capitalism

● Durkheim
➢ The impacts of urbanization on individuals’ sense of community, solidarity, … 11
Karl Marx’s Diagnosis of Capitalism

Karl Marx (1818-1883)

● German-born journalist, philosopher, historian, economist,
political scientist, sociologist, revolutionary socialist, …

● Whatever you want to call him, what Marx did was to

provide a critical diagnosis of the modern capitalist system

● There are some key concepts in Marx’s diagnosis of

capitalism 12
Karl Marx’s Diagnosis of Capitalism

1. Alienation
● For Marx, alienation refers to feelings of estrangement (isolation; separation) that an
individual has in relation to objects, other individuals, and her/his true self
● In a capitalist society, workers become alienated in various ways:
• For example, they do not own the products they create
➢ Alienation from product
• They find themselves in competition with their fellow workers for scarce jobs
➢ Alienation from other human beings
• They are dehumanized by tedious & repetitive labor processes over which they have no control
➢ Alienation from labor 13
Karl Marx’s Diagnosis of Capitalism

1. Alienation (cont.)

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Karl Marx’s Diagnosis of Capitalism

2. “Class conflict” as the nature of capitalism

● In Marx’s words, “All human history thus far is the history of class struggles.”

● In capitalist system, workers become alienated by the demands placed on them by capitalists
● Capitalists own capital (e.g., factories, lands) and become a ruling class (i.e., the bourgeoisie)
● Most of the population makes up a working class, who do not own the means of their livelihood but
must find employment offered by capitalists (i.e., the proletariat)

● Capitalism is a class system in which conflict is “inevitable” because the two classes’ (the
bourgeoisie & proletariat) interests are opposed 15
Karl Marx’s Diagnosis of Capitalism

3. Capitalist crisis: “Capitalism is unstable and doomed to failure”

● According to Marx, the inner logic of capitalism itself leads to periodic economic crises
● The cause of capitalist crisis is overproduction (too many goods than can be sold profitably)
● The cycle of overproduction, competitions between capitalists, unemployment, insolvency, and
economic crises is inevitable in the capitalist system

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Karl Marx’s Diagnosis of Capitalism

4. Communist revolution
● The class conflict between the bourgeoisie and proletariat, along with chronic economic
crises within the capitalist system itself, would produce social change through a Communist
revolution

● In the communist society,

● “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.” (Marx 1875)
● Private property is abolished
● Free access to and distribution of goods, capital, and services
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Max Weber and the “sprit” of capitalism

Max Weber (1864-1920)

● German sociologist, historian, political economist, …

● Weber grew up in the prime time of German

industrialization
● Capitalism was replacing small towns with large cities
● Big companies were restructuring the economy
● A new managerial elite was replacing the old aristocracy

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Max Weber and the “sprit” of capitalism

● The guiding question of Max Weber on capitalism:

➢ How was modern capitalism born? What is the driving factor in the creation of capitalism?

● The dominant view was that the developments in technology

essential to the rise of capitalism 資*
回 (e.g., the steam engine) was

● Weber didn’t like this technology/material-based explanation

● Weber also criticized Marx for his exclusive focus on structural basis of capitalism, such as the
economy and social class.
● Weber advocated sociological analysis to accommodate the multiple influences of culture, ideas,
economics, and politics. (This is the key difference between Marx and Weber!)
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Max Weber and the “sprit” of capitalism

● Q: How was modern capitalism born?

● Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism suggests an answer

● “Religious ideas” (Protestantism, specifically, Calvinism) is the engine of the development of capitalism

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Max Weber and the “sprit” of capitalism

● Q: How was modern capitalism born?

● Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism suggests an answer

● “Religious ideas” (Protestantism, specifically, Calvinism) is the engine of the development of capitalism
1) Whether someone will go to heaven or hell was ”pre-destined” by God (Predestination) 預定
2) This generated a state of anxiety in Calvinists about their salvation (Salvation panic) 救贖恐慌
3) This led to Calvinists searching for signs from God that they were one of the chosen few
4) They came to perceive “economic success” in a worldly calling as a sign of God’s will
5) When they earned money, they reinvested the money into their businesses for greater economic
success, instead of spending the money on buying luxury items, doing party, etc. (Asceticism)
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禁慾主義
Max Weber and the “sprit” of capitalism

● Q: How was modern capitalism born?

● Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism suggests an answer

● “Religious ideas” (Protestantism, specifically, Calvinism) is the engine of the development of capitalism
1) Whether someone will go to heaven or hell was ”pre-destined” by God (Predestination)
2) This generated a state of anxiety in Calvinists about their salvation (Salvation panic)
3) This led to Calvinists searching for signs from God that they were one of the chosen few
4) They came to perceive “economic success” in a worldly calling as a sign of God’s will
5) When they earned money, they reinvested the money into their businesses for greater economic
success, instead of spending the money on buying luxury items, doing party, etc. (Asceticism)
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Durkheim: Suicide and solidarity in society

Émile Durkheim (1858-1917)

● French sociologist; the one who formally established the
academic discipline of sociology

● Durkheim’s notion of the objective and scientific study of society

laid the groundwork for modern sociology (that is, positivist
sociology)
● He himself used scientific research tools, such as statistics,
surveys, and observation in his analysis (most notably in his
famous book, Suicide)

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 團結
Durkheim: Suicide and solidarity in society

● Émile Durkheim lived in a period marked by social and political turmoil in France
● The Long 19th Century
動盪
● French Revolution (~1789) French First Republic (~1804) First French Empire (~1815) Bourbon
Restoration (~1830) July Monarchy (~1848) ….

● The rapid industrialization in the early to mid-1800s in France

● Durkheim’s major themes in his sociological work:

➢ How do industrialization and modern capitalism transform the ways people relate to one another?
➢ Why did industrialization have negative impact on subjective well-being, and increased suicides?
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Durkheim: Suicide and solidarity in society
悲慘的
Q: Why does industrialization (and ensued capitalism) make people more miserable
and more likely to kill themselves, although it makes them richer than the past?

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Durkheim: Suicide and solidarity in society

Q: Why does industrialization (and ensued capitalism) make people more miserable and more
likely to kill themselves, although it makes them richer than the past?
無規範
D’s answer: The core reason is “normlessness” (i.e., anomie) resulting from dramatic changes in living
conditions due to industrialization/capitalism…
● In pre-industrial societies, individuals had few choices regarding what job to take, whom to marry, what job to take,
what religion to follow, whether to have kids and how to raise them, …
相比之下
● In contrast, in modern capitalist societies, people have to choose everything for themselves on these…

● Too much freedom, and too little regulation (i.e., individuals are not subject to social norms; “anomie”) is the cause
of anomic suicide
被破壞的
● Capitalism has undermined social norms, while making societies more complex, diverse, and individualized… 26
Durkheim: Suicide and solidarity in society

● The Division of Labor in Society (1893)

● Focused on the degree to which jobs became “specialized” (i.e, the division of labor)
● Higher division of labor didn’t just affect work and productivity but had social and moral
consequences as well, including and especially on “solidarity”
● Mechanical solidarity: The social cohesion of small, undifferentiated societies with lower
division of labor (traditional societies)

● Organic solidarity: The social cohesion of societies differentiated by relatively higher (complex)
division of labor (modern societies)

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Classical sociological theory

● By any chance, if you would like to learn more about Marx/Weber/Durkheim’s scholarly
work and their intellectual legacies, please consider to take …

● SOCI2001: Classical Social Theory (2nd semester)

➢ Marx (Capital)
➢ Durkheim (Suicide, The Division of Labour in Society)
➢ Weber (Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Power & Domination)
➢ Smith (The Wealth of Nation)
➢ …
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Modern sociological theories

1. Functionalism
• Functionalism argues that things can best be explained in terms of the functions they perform

• The key function of interest is whether things contribute to the continuity (stability) of society

載入中⋯
• Various social institutions (e.g., family, state, market, religion) and processes in society exist to serve
the most important function, that is, to keep society running!

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Modern sociological theories

1. Functionalism
• Functionalism argues that things can best be explained in terms of the functions they perform

• The key function of interest is whether things contribute to the continuity (stability) of society

• Various social institutions (e.g., family, state, market, religion) and processes in society exist to serve
the most important function, that is, to keep society running!
● Talcott Parsons (1902-1979): The functionalist perspective on the family
• For Parsons, the family serves essential functions in modern society (e.g., socialization of children)
• The “harmony” generated by the complementary roles of husband (breadwinning) & wife (homemaking) was
essential to the preservation of the family as well as the stability of larger society
• To critics, this is the rationalization of the male-dominated status quo, serving a conservative political agenda
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Modern sociological theories

2. Conflict theory
• Conflict theory is a perspective that emphasizes the role of political oppression and economic
power as contributing to the existing social order (status quo)

• Conflict theory developed in reaction to the dominance of structural functionalism, suggesting that
conflict among competing interests (e.g., class conflict) is the basic force of social change and
society in general

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Modern sociological theories

2. Conflict theory
• Conflict theory is a perspective that emphasizes the role of political oppression and economic
power as contributing to the existing social order (status quo)

• Conflict theory developed in reaction to the dominance of structural functionalism, suggesting that
conflict among competing interests (e.g., class conflict) is the basic force of social change and
society in general

• Conflict theory doesn’t regard the male-breadwinner/female-homemaker model as harmonious and

functional
• Men use their greater strength to gain power in the family (gender inequality)

• All in all, family works toward the continuation of social inequality (esp. gender inequality) by
reinforcing the status quo 32
Modern sociological theories

3. Feminist theory
• A branch of the conflict theory, holding a critical stance toward gender inequality/gender disparities
in any forms

• Early feminist theory focused on challenging conventional wisdom, arguing that biological sex
differences are learned and internalized through differential socialization

• More recent research focuses on various forms of inequality based on gender categories, focusing
on women’s experiences at home and in the workplace
• We are going to learn more about this on Week 12

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Modern sociological theories

4. Symbolic interactionism
• Emerged and developed in the 1960s as a reaction to the grand (macro-level) theories (e.g.,
functionalism, conflict theory)

• The overarching theme of symbolic interactionism is how face-to-face interactions in our daily lives
create the social world

• Contrary to conflict theory or functionalism, symbolic interactionism grasp and analyze class/social
status in daily interactional settings, based on “how people speak, what they wear, and the other
tiny detail of how they present themselves to others.”

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Modern sociological theories

5. Postmodernism
• In sociology, postmodernism is a theory that questions grand narratives and objective truth

• Postmodernism is characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, relativism, cynicism …

• A broad argument is that there is no longer one version of history that is correct

6. Midrange theory 整合 theoyt 經驗

• Midrange theory is an attempt to integrate theory and empirical research

• It is currently the dominant type of sociological theorizing/sociological research, especially in the US

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Modern sociological theories

● By any chance, if you would like to learn more about these various contemporary
sociological theories, our SOCI department has an option for you:

● SOCI3024: Modern social theory (2nd semester)

➢ This course will provide an overview of the main currents, themes and debates in
modern and contemporary Western social theory, with a primary focus on
sociological and anthropological contributions

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See you next week!

Slides templates:
Ma, G. Y. K., Choi, C., & Yeung, P. P. S. (2023) PowerPoint template.
#IDEALeaders Self-learning Series: Co-creation of virtual learning
accessibility. HKU Data Repository. https://doi.org/10.25442/hku.22683433

20/9/2023

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