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Bell Ringer! *Remember: Bell Ringers are worth 5 points each and turned in at the end of every unit! They cannot be made up if you are absent. Is unemployment a personal or public issue? Explain. How about obesity? Personal or public? Explain.
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Sociological Imagination
C. Wright Mills- The Sociological Imagination (1959) Task of sociology is to realize that individual circumstances are linked to the structure of society Allows sociologists to focus on the common behaviors of groups of people not just the individual!
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Sociological Imagination
Components of SI: History: How societies come to be, change, and make history Biography: What kinds of people live in a particular society Social Structure: The power structure of groups and institutions within a society. Ability to detach oneself from assumptions about social life in order to critically analyze social behavior
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Social Sciences Sociology is considered a social science
Social sciences study of the social feature of humans and the ways in which they interact and change. Social Sciences include: Anthropology Psychology Economics History Political Science
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History of Sociology
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Auguste Comte (1798-1857) Founder of Sociology
You cannot completely understand a science if you don’t know its history. Founder of Sociology Coined the term sociology in 1838 Ideas: Theoretical science of society and investigation of behavior were needed to improve society Different from natural sciences; comparative historical method (makes sociology unique) Ahh-Goost Komt (someone else STOLE social physics) Religion of Humanity—interesting ideas about science making it impossible for religion to survive. Morality still important, so created new religion based on combining reason and religion.
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Karl Marx ( ) Men make their own history…but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past. Widely known for economic theories, but primarily a social reformer (wanted change!) Ideas: A person’s social standing at birth determined the quality of his/her life and opportunities Those who control the means of production will exploit the working class for their own financial gain Imbalance of power leads to class struggle and, eventually, revolution! “Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past.” German!
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Harriet Martineau (1802-1876) Considered the first female sociologist
The progression of emancipation of any class usually, if not always, takes place through the efforts of individuals of that class. Considered the first female sociologist Ideas: Noted inequalities in social class, gender and race Criticized slavery from both moral and economic standpoints; supported abolition of slavery Strongly criticized the state of education of women British -The progression of emancipation of any class usually, if not always, takes place through the efforts of individuals of that class. -The sum and substance of female education in America, as in England, is training women to consider marriage as the sole object in life, and to pretend that they do not think so. The sum…of female education in America…is training women to consider marriage as the sole object in life, and to pretend that they do not think so.
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You must be a survivor, because you’re definitely the fittest.
Herbert Spencer ( ) Hey Girl, You must be a survivor, because you’re definitely the fittest. Extremely popular European intellectual Ideas: Believed evolution could be applied to a multitude of sciences, including sociology Compared society to a biological organism Social Darwinism: The best ideas and groups in society survive and the worst become extinct British "the single most famous European intellectual in the closing decades of the nineteenth century“ -Briefly romantically linked to “George Eliot” (Mary Ann Evans) -”Life is the continuous adjustment of internal relations to external relations.” Life is the continuous adjustment of internal relations to external relations.
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Emile Durkheim ( ) It is science, and not religion, which has taught men that things are complex and difficult to understand. The first social scientist to apply methods of science to the study of sociology Ideas: Believed that behavior must be understood within a larger social context, not just in individualistic terms Studied the consequences of work in modern societies French
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Max Weber ( ) Humans act on the basis of their own understanding of a situation Sociologists must work to understand the underlying beliefs and attitudes that guide human behavior. Ideas: Verstehen: Understanding social behavior by putting oneself in the place of others Rationalization: Mindset that relies on knowledge and reason French
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Ida Wells-Barnett (1862 – 1931) Advocate in the women’s rights campaign Analyzed society as a means of resisting oppression Worked with Jane Addams ( ) as an activist in the campaign for women’s right to vote French
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W.E.B. DuBois (1868 – 1963) Conducted research that he hoped would assist in the struggle for a racially egalitarian (equal) society Conducted in-depth studies of urban life in major cities Inspirational figure for many African American civil rights leaders French
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