THE CONCEPT OF

SOCIETY
UNDERSTANDING
CULTURE, SOCIETY AND
POLITICS
BY W I LM A R O LI VA R - A D A M O S
Choose the right emotion and let it reflect through
actions.

- The Seeker of Light

WHAT CAN YOU SAY ABOUT
SOCIETY?
Describe the society in one powerful word and explain its
concept.
10 minute activity
Criteria:
5 – reasoning
5 - presentation
THE CONCEPT OF SOCIETY
AS AN OBJECTIVE REALITY
Society
- came from the Latin word societas, which in turn was derived
from the noun socius (comrade, ally) used to describe a bond
or interaction between parties that are friendly, or at least civil.
- a level of organization of groups that is relatively self
contained.
- refer to persistent interactions among members of a
particular group like kinship group and other institutions.
VIEWS ABOUT SOCIETY
Society for Sociologists
- refer to a bounded territory or a nation – state.
- globalization tends to integrate societies into a world system
that weakens the territorial boundaries of societies.
VIEWS ABOUT SOCIETY: 19 TH
CENTURY
Methodological Individualism
- collective concepts, such as groups, associations, and
societies do not exist, but only individual members.
- example: A typical class in school, as a collective group,
does not exist , but only teacher and students.
VIEWS ABOUT SOCIETY:
EMILE DURKHEIM
Sociological Realism
- states that society is sui generis and cannot be reduced to
individual that aggregates or parts.
- existence of norms and customs are proof of the existence
of society.
- example: One cannot invent new language out of nowhere.
One has to used the language system that is already in use
in a particular society where the individual is born.
EMILE DURKHEIM’S
ARGUMENT
Suicide
- Durkheim avoided the use of psychological &
individualistic explanation of suicide. He rather looked
into the statistics of suicide rates and provided a
sociological explanation for the persistence of suicide.
- he’s looking for the concept of sense of belongingness.
EMILE DURKHEIM’S
ARGUMENT
Suicide
- example: the case of Kamikaze pilots (WWII)
- Actions are constrained by the norms and sanctions
imposed by society, and these norms are internalized
by our conscience.
- Example: SoKor students’ suicide rates, Japanese value
of education.
CONSCIENCE
- the totality of beliefs and sentiments common to the
average members of society forms a determinate system
with the life of its own.
- can be termed as creative consciousness (refer to Kaku’s
definition).
HOW SOCIETIES PERSIST?
Reproduction (by Louis Althusser in his reproduction
theory)
- creation of institutions to perpetuate the existence of
society.
2 types of institutions that reproduce the condition of
social life:
1. ideological state apparatuses
2. repressive state apparatuses
IDEOLOGICAL STATE
APPARATUSES
- are institutions that are created and used by society to
mold its members to share the same values and beliefs
that a typical members of the society possesses.
- ideological functions
REPRESSIVE STATE
APPARATUSES
- refer to the coercive institutions that use physical force
to make members conform to the laws and norms of the
society like courts, police and prisons.
THINK!!!

Nothing is true and everything is permitted.

(Assassin’s creed)
HOW SOCIETIES PERSIST?
4 General Pre – requisites that all societies must attend to
in order to survive: (by Talcott Parsons in his theory of
structural functionalism)
1. Adaptation
2. Goal attainment
3. Integration
4. Latency
ADAPTATION
- is the capacity of the society to take resources from
society and distribute them accordingly.
- this function is carried by economy.
GOAL ATTAINMENT
- is the capability to set goals and mobilize the resources
and energies necessary to achieve the goals set forth
by society.
- political resolutions and societal objectives
INTEGRATION
- harmonization of the entire society to achieve
consensus.
- coordination, adjustment, and regulation of the rest of
subsystem so that society will continue to function
smoothly.
- system should be fairly consistent.
LATENCY
- requires that society is able to constantly produce and
socialize actors who will follow the norms and roles
given to them by society.
- example: family and school
MAIN GOAL OF SOCIAL
SYSTEM
- to make the 4 functional pre – requisites work.
- maintain the state of equilibrium.
CONCLUSION
Society is an objective reality, which means that it is
relatively independent of how people conceive it.
END OF SESSION

We must embrace the chaotic beauty of reality.

(Assassin’s creed)