Fordham University
Graduate Course Sociology
Fall 2015
SOCI6100 R01
CLASSICAL SOCIAL THEORY: 1890-1930
Mondays5:30-7:20 PM
DEALY HALL 105
Faculty: E. Doyle McCarthy
Dealy 405A; phone: 718-817-3855;
Office hours for graduate students: Wednesdays 2-4 pm and by appointment.
The best way to contact me is by email; please do so at any time, before or during this course.
Course Description
This is a course about the social and historical processes that gave rise to “modernity.” Its texts—written from the mid-1800s to the period between the world wars—are the classic statements on the modern world written by Karl Marx, Alexis de Tocqueville, Ferdinand Tönnies, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Georg Simmel. According to these writers, the process of the formation of modern societies includes four major processes—the economic, the political, the social, and the cultural—and can be traced to developments that followed the decline of feudalism in Western Europe. Each of them contributed theories about one or more of these processes, but we identify Marx as the preeminent thinker about the “economy” as a distinct sphere of social life, just as we identify Weber with a cultural sociology that emphasizes religion as a force for profound change in the early modern era. Tocqueville, a writer on the historical origins of the French Revolution, is the author of the first work on the “democratic revolution” of the 19th Century. Throughout the course, we will return to the examination of how each of the processes were used by these writers to trace the emergence of modern societies and how these processes contributed to the distinct character of the modern world.
The course begins with the movement known as the Enlightenment and its importance for modernity and for the rise of the “science of man,” the precursor of modern sociology. Certain select themes of the 18th Century are discussed: the modern idea of “society” as communities and organizations that change, grow, and develop; the search for an objective science of society; the use of reason and social science to advance individual freedom, humanity, and the social order. Montesquieu’s The Spirit of the Laws (1748) is described as both a great work of this movement and the first major work in political sociology.
Works by Alexis de Tocqueville, Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber are read for their distinctive (and conflicting) ideas concerning industrial democracies and for their different conceptions of modern social and political development and its future. Each of these authors also offers different theories about how the realm of “material life” (labor, economy, markets, etc.) is related to “ideational forms” (ideology, consciousness, knowledge, beliefs, etc.) and how the respective domains change. Selections from the work of Georg Simmel are also read and discussed, his essays as well as his Philosophy of Money.
The final section of the course treats the American pragmatist philosopher George Herbert Mead, author of Mind, Self, and Society (1934), a work that influenced generations of American sociologists writing on the “social self.” Mead’s work is best cast alongside of his European contemporaries who were formulating social theories of mind, consciousness, and knowledge.
The final lecture, will provide a review of these works as “modernist works” and briefly review the critique of these works by “postmodernist” writers.
Course format:
The course is a required theory course in the sociology graduate program.
Each week the class opens with a lecture on a topic on one of the required books or a section of a book. Students are expected to come to class having read the assigned weekly readings so that the lecture has a context; the final section of each class is expected to open up into a class discussion as well as questions and clarifications of the readings and/or the lecture.Preparing the weekly readings is a requirement of this course and will be considered in the final grading.
Required Readings: Available at online bookstores and at the university bookstore, McGinleyCenter. PLEASE BE SURE TO USE ONLY THESE EDITIONS.
Books are listed in the order that we will read them.
Each week you are reading the book that we are treating in class. You may do this at your own pace but you are expected to read each book when we are talking about it in class.
1Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895)
The Manifesto of the Communist Party (1848). Penguin Classics Edition.
ISBN 0-140-44757-1 PENGUIN CLASSICS EDITION ONLY
This is a landmark text, a critique of modern bourgeois society, a political treatise summoning the industrial workers of industrial capitalism to rise up and revolt and to throw off their shackles. It contains all of Marx’s oppositions, the elements in his “dialectic”—the “contradictions” that will lead to revolution: especially the continual change and creation of modernism and its oppressive forces of horror and destruction; the life-giving impetus of each person bound to the process of creative labor or praxis and the capacity of the inanimate “forces of production” to alienate and destroy all that is life-giving. The Manifesto contains some of the great myths of modern life—alienation and creative change, the plight of the individual in the face of the oppressive power of the social order, the continual struggle of material life for possession of the modern soul.
2Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859)
Democracy in AmericaVol. 2. (1835) Vintage Paperback.
Vintage Paperback. ISBN 0-679-72826-0 THIS EDITION ONLY
Tocqueville’s classic treatise is an original statement about America as well as the “democratic revolution” of the 19th Century. The work gives us an image of democracy, its inclinations, character, prejudices, and passions. The book is written “…to learn what we have to fear or to hope from [democracy’s] progress.” It is considered a first work on the rise of a new mass society of “individuals.”
3Max Weber (1864-1920)
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1905) Routledge edition only.
THIS EDITION ONLY. ISBN 0-415-25406-X
please be sure to purchase the Routledge edition. Contact me if you have difficulties getting this book.
This work is Weber’s challenge to Marxist method and his own distinct contribution to German “cultural sociology.” It is considered by many as a brilliant analysis of the ideational roots of capitalist economic organization in the Reformation doctrines of Martin Luther and John Calvin and their 17th Century heirs. He argues for the “elective affinity” of these doctrines regarding salvation and the “style of life” necessary for the building up of the capitalist economy and social structure, its commercial and this-worldly ethos.
4Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
The Rules of Sociological Method (1895/1982) Free Press 1982 edition only.
THIS EDITION ONLY. ISBN 0.02.907940-3
This is a polemical work in which its author distinguishes the subject matter
of sociology from that of philosophy: it is the empirical study of “social facts.” This edition also includes supplementary essays on the differences between the science of psychology and of sociology. In addition to this methodological work, the lectures will treat Durkheim’s theory of industrial society and its distinct forms of “social solidarity.” We conclude with Suicide (1897), a work where Durkheim applies his arguments in Rules… to the study of rates of suicide as “social facts.”
5Georg Simmel (1958-1918)
Georg Simmel On Individuality and Social Forms, Selected Writings (1971).
University of Chicago Press.
GEORG SIMMEL ON INDIVIDUALITY AND SOCIAL FORMS
ISBN 0-226-75776-5 PAPER EDITION ONLY.
This is a collection of Simmel’s writings across a number of fields in sociology including methodology, social interaction, social psychology, and modern culture. The lectures will focus on several of Simmel’s essays as well as his important work on the social, philosophical, and psychological aspects of the money economy, The Philosophy of Money ([1907] 2004).
6George Herbert Mead (1863-1931)
Mind, Self, and Society: From the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist (1934/1962)University of Chicago Press.
ISBN 978 0 226-51668-4
Mead’s work offers to sociology a sociologist’s view of mentality and the self:
thinking, reflection, and self-conscious selfhood presuppose a social universe, human interaction, and language where thinking, speech, and consciousness are seen as part of an ongoing dialogue with others brought inside ourselves or “internalized.” Even the ability to view ourselves as part of our field of action and interaction, presupposes the perspectives of others and the group that are swept into our own conscious life and are used as we engage in ongoing interactions with others.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1 Weekly attendance & participation in class is required. 14 pts.
Students are required to read the assigned readings each week.
2Three short papers described below. 66 pts
3Final exam 20 pts (take-home exam)
GRADING
The final letter grade takes into account one’s preparation for weekly classes and one’s participation in class discussions (14 pts.); the papers total 66 pts of the final grade; I will give you written responses to your papers so that you can use my comments in future papers.The final exam is 20 points. A grade of A or A- reflects significant and excellent work in all aspects of the course (weekly reading, class discussions, papers, exam).
Papers:
Students select 3 books from the list of required books. For each of these 3 books, students will write an essay on a topic, theme, or problem that the book treats. These essays are about 5 pages in length; references to particular sections are made with the usual (p. ) format. The assigned edition of the book is used for these papers (no exceptions).
The choice of books will be written up and submitted during the first weeks of the course. In this “selection paper,” due on OCT 7th (after 4-5 weeks of class)briefly state and in your own words in about 1-2 pages double-spaced, why you have selected these works over others. A brief working reference list of secondary sources may also be submitted, but is not required. Place your statement in a folder; this folder is submitted with each paper you write, so that when you hand in your last paper I can review all 3 of them and your initial statement. You may also change your choices and submit a revised statement as the course develops.Please note: This selection statement is required and is considered an important beginning to the writing of your papers; if you change your choice of papers you need to submit a revised selection paper.
Please hand in your paper(s) in class after the book is treated in class. For example, if we complete the Max Weber lectures on October 21, you hand in that paper on the following Wednesday we meet for class; the week after is also acceptable. This is a good idea because it allows me to provide you with a response to your written work.
It is suggested that each paper be handed in as described above so I can provide you with responses to your papers.
Each paper is kept in your paper folder and each paper remains there as you hand in each one.
At the last class, ALL 3 PAPERS WILL BE HANDED IN for a final paper grade:
DEC 16th. No exceptions and no extensions. Late papers will require that you fill out a form for a grade of Incomplete in the course.
Selecting the books and writing your papers:
The paper topics should be selected because you want to learn more about this theorist and/or work. So give some thought to this. Write your “selection paper” in a direct way using the 1st person “I” as you write. Discuss how you came to decide on your books.
Considering your selection of books: You should choose a book(s) that interests you and/or that you need to learn about for your studies. As you consider your selection also consider a particular topic or theme or problem that you think important or interesting; I can serve as your guide if your topic is too broad. I can also refer you to works on your topic.
Here are some examples of paper topics:
The Protestant Ethic…
Weber’s challenge to Marx
The problem of “idealism” vs “realism” in reading The Protestant Ethic…
Examples of Weber’s methodology in The Protestant Ethic (i.e., how did he proceed and why? How is he able to use Franklin’s work as a critical text? Etc.)
Rules of Sociological Method
Durkheim’s distinctive method.
Durkheim’s understanding of “social facts.”
Durkheim’s essays on social psychology.
3 papers on Enlightenment themes in reading Marx, Weber, Durkheim….
3 papers on the conceptual methods/theories of Marx, Weber, Durkheim i.e., what are central features of their thinking about social reality? about history? and the forces of historical & social change?
Organizing your papers:
When you write the paper you present an argument in the opening section & return to it in the conclusion. The reader should know what you are writing about after reading the opening paragraph.In the body of the paper you exemplify your argument through a discussion of the text, its organization, its themes, its important cases or examples.
The papers are text directed, meaning that you need to engage the text and to refer to it as you write your papers.
Use (p. ) for page references.
Double-space the papers.
Always use the assigned text & edition. I welcome meetings with you to discuss your papers. Please email me first & then we will make an appointment.
DEC 16th
The final take-home exam (20 pts.) is expected to reflect your knowledge from both the lectures and the readings.It will be either a take-home or in-class exam on the readings and lectures.
Please note these dates for this course
Wed Sept 2 classes begin GSAS
Wed Sept 9 follows Monday schedule
Wed Nov 26Thanksgiving recess begins and runs through the weekend
Wed Dec 16 Last class in this course final exam handed in and 3 papers together in folder
Primary & Secondary sources used in each lecture are distributed each week.
Selected secondary sources for the course include:
Raymond Aaron Main Currents in Sociological Thought Vols. I & II
Jeffrey Alexander & Steven Seidman eds. Culture & Society: Contemporary Debates (1990)
Louis Althusser Montesquieu, Rousseau, Marx (1959)
______. For Marx. (1969) (1969)
Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann The Social Construction of Reality. (1967)
Victoria Bonnell & Lynn Hunt eds. Beyond the Cultural Turn (1999)
Norbert Elias The Civilizing Process. (1939/2000)
______. What is Sociology? (1978)
Peter Gay The Enlightenment: An Interpretation
Vol I: The Rise of Modern Paganism (1966)
Vol II: The Science of Freedom (1969)
Anthony Giddens Capitalism & Modern Social Theory (1971)
Anthony Giddens & Jonathan Turner eds. Social Theory Today (1987)
Bryan S. Green Literary Methods and Sociological Theory (1988)
Richard Harland Superstructuralism: The Philosophy of Structuralism & Post-Structuralism (1987)
Geoffrey Hawthorn Enlightenment and Despair (1976 )
Robert Heilbroner The Worldly Philosophers (1972)
H. Stuart Hughes Consciousness & Society: The Reorientation of European
Social Thought 1890-1930. (1958)
Mark Hulling Montesquieu and the Old Regime (1976)
Hans Joas Pragmatism & Social Theory (1993)
Charles Lemert Sociology & the Twilight of Man (1979)
Niklas Luhmann Theories of Distinction: Redescribing the Descriptions of Modernity (2002)
Robert Nisbet The Social Philosophers (1973)
Talcott Parsons The Structure of Social Action. (1937)
George Ritzer ed. Frontiers of Social Theory (1990)
Marshall Sahlins Culture & Practical Reason. (1976)
Edward W. Said Orientalism. (1978)
Steven Seidman Liberalism and the Origins of Modern Social Theory (1983)
Steven Seidman and David G. Wagner Postmodernism & Social Theory (1992)
Alan Sica ed. What Is Social Theory? (1998)
Quentin Skinner The Return of Grand Theory in the Human Sciences (1985)
Dorothy Smith The Everyday World As Problematic (1987)
Charles Taylor Sources of the Self: The Making of the Modern Identity (1989)
A Secular Age (2007).
Immanuel Wallerstein After Liberalism (1995)
Hayden White Metahistory: The Historical Imagination in Nineteenth-Century Europe (1973)
Irving Zeitlin Ideology and the Development of Sociological Theory 6/e (1996)
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