History of Sociology
History of Sociology
History of Sociology
He derived the Latin socius, ‘companion’ ; joined with suffix -logy ,the study of’ itself from
the Greek logos (knowledge
Later Auguste Comte a French philosopher known as founder of sociology and positivism
was the first to develope the concept of Sociology
He defined sociology as a positive science .positiviism is the search for ‘’invariant laws
In 1838 he refer to the scientific study of society . he was inspired by physics because it
deals with science and to understand nature science is important so he name the study of
society as social physics later he named it sociology
Sociology emerged as a separate discipline in the mid-1800s in western Europe, during the onset of the
Industrial Revolution. Industrialization affected all aspects of human existence—where people lived, the
nature of their work, their relationships, and how they viewed life. Early sociologists who focused on
these social changes include Auguste Comte, Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber,
Harriet Martineau, and W. E. B. Du Bois
the largest social force that contributed to the development of sociology would be the era
we call the Enlightenment. This is when we moved from an agrarian way of living that was
ruled over by the Catholic Church into the beginning of a more urban, mechaninized life. I
think the first major invention in this era is when the Scottsman James Watt developed the
steam engine. Many other factors come into play besides religion. Economics is a major
force in most societies. Many great minds contributed to the school of sociology. Marx,
Weber, DuBois, deBeavior and many others.
Sociology is about group behavior and the many forces that contribute to group behavior.
Values, beliefs and norms all are factors that influe Sociology is the study of the lives of
humans, groups and societies and how we interact. Dramatic social times occurred because of the
massive changes in society that took place leading up to the modern world.
The difference between ‘traditional’ and ‘modern’ led to the term ‘modernity’ and the modern
world of the 19th century was shaped by the Indust
In the wake of industrialisation, some sociologists that argued for a system of understanding
sociological change were; Auguste Comte, Herbert Sp encer, Emile Durkheim, Karl Marx and
Max Weber. All had different theories but all contributed significantly to sociology as a
discipline.
The Industrial Revolution refers to the rapid changes in areas such as culture, industry, politics,
technology, science and communication which took place in the latter half of the eighteenth
century to the first half of the nineteenth century (Marshall, 1998). It defines the transformation
from a predominantly rural and agrarian society to an increasingly urban one based on
manufacturing and industries. What is Sociology?
During both the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries advances in science and technology
encouraged people to believe that there could be a rational explanation for everything and that
scientific study could lead to the solving of all the problems faced by human beings.
The post-Newtonian physical sciences had promised comprehensive understanding of the Earth
and its place in the universe, in the form of scientific laws. In the wake of this, Auguste Comte,
who gave the name to sociology, confidently expected that it would provide the highest level of
scientific explanation in establishing laws of human society itself. Karl Marx and Herbert
Spencer developed alternative comprehensive sociological accounts of societal development.
The post-Darwinian natural sciences presented explanations of life on Earth with the theory of
evolution and the origin of the species. As a result, there was increased public interest in
developmental accounts of human society, and it was anticipated that the social sciences would
extend this 'enlightenment project' into explanations for the collective activities and relationships
of human beings, explanations that could provide the basis for political action.
The 'classical sociologists' of the nineteenth century were European – mainly from Britain,
France and Germany – but the great expansion of the discipline took place in the USA during the
mid-twentieth century. Whereas the contribution from Europe was mainly theoretical, North
Americans were determined to exploit its practical potential through investment in empirical
research projects connected with the continuing development of their society and its enormous
economic potential. This led to the development of a range of new theoretical approaches and
methodologies, both quantitative and qualitative.
Modern Sociology
Sociology was first taught in Britain at the beginning of the 20th century but the expansion here
took place much more recently and was at first greatly influenced by US sociology. During the
1960s, especially, it became a key social science subject, taught in universities and colleges, and
with the development of the sociology ´A´ level during the 1970s it became a major subject in
schools too. Now, as well as being an academic subject in its own right, sociology forms part of
many other programmes such as business studies, medical and nursing education, geography and
environmental science, as well as sports science.
Sociology seeks to provide insights into, and evidence about, the many forms of relationship
among people, both formal and informal. Such relationships are considered to be the 'fabric' of
society. Smaller-scale relationships are connected to larger-scale patterns of connection among
organisations and institutional sectors, and the totality of this is society itself.
Human beings have wants, needs and desires but the forms that these take are related to
attachments to social groupings and participation in social institutions. The latter are patterns of
human interaction which beco
Enlightenment and especially the French revolution, brought the idea of civil society
and civil rights [Szacki, 85]. The Enlightenment claimed that all human beings share
some common characteristics that are independent of external, historical or natural
conditions. It was a kind of individualism, that claimed that human nature in general
have some common characteristics inherited form the state of nature. That is what
makes society egalitarian – differences between human status in society are merely
secondary. In this sense that all (male) human beings are equal and share the same
civic rightsme established over time. People therefore recognise them and orientate their actions
towards them. Alternatively, people may react against social institutions. Either way, it is the
actions of people that serve both to reproduce society and to effect the changes that are a
constant feature of the process.
Developments in communication have accelerated over the past few decades, leading to what is
often referred to as globalisation. These wide interconnections must be taken into account in any
explanations for social behaviour, but so too must how the present form of human society relates to
past forms, and to likely forms in the future.
reason. divine force; makes humans human; destroys intolerance.
nature. good and reasonable; nature's laws govern the universe.
happiness. acheived if you live by nature's laws; don't have to wait for
heaven.
progress. ...
liberty and freedom.
Enlightenment thinkers in Britain, in France and throughout
Europe questioned traditional authority and embraced the notion that
humanity could be improved through rational change. The
Enlightenment produced numerous books, essays, inventions,
scientific discoveries, laws, wars and revolutions. The American and
French Revolutions were directly inspired by Enlightenment ideals
and respectively marked the peak of its influence and the beginning
of its decline
In my opinion I think that the two most important Enlightenment ideas is
the separation of powers and freedom of thoughts and expression. I think
these two enlightenment ideas is the most important because it had
the most impact.
According to sociologist Gideon Sjoberg (1965), there are three prerequisites for the
development of a city: First, good environment with fresh water and a favorable climate;
second, advanced technology, which will produce a food surplus to support nonfarmers;
and third, strong social organization to ensure social stability and a stable economy.
Most scholars agree that the first cities were developed somewhere in ancient
Mesopotamia, though there are disagreements about exactly where. Most early cities
were small by today’s standards, and the largest was most likely Rome, with about
650,000 inhabitants (Chandler and Fox 1974). The factors limiting the size of ancient
cities included lack of adequate sewage control, limited food supply, and immigration
restrictions. For example, serfs were tied to the land, and transportation was limited and
inefficient. Today, the primary influence on cities’ growth is economic forces. Since the
recent economic rec