Sociology: Émile Durkheim and Social Facts

• Sociology studies human society and its phenomena
• It focuses on understanding how people interact, organize in groups, and develop social structures

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

• French sociologist, a founder of modern sociology
• Laid foundations for discipline's development as an independent science
• He established fundamental methods and concepts still relevant.
• Sociology should study society as an objective reality external to individuals
• Society possesses own laws and structures
• Rejected idea society equals individual sum
• Social phenomena have independent existence, influencing individual's behavior
• Proposed scientific approach based on observation, comparison, empirical research
• Need to analyze "social facts:" ways of thinking, acting, feeling external to individual, exert coercion
• Social facts like laws, customs, exist independently of people, influence them
• Society imposes these to unite members with shared thinking/acting
• Used language or monetary system as example; learn to use within culture before birth
• Society must fulfill functions to survive
• Functions distribute among members known as division of labor
• Each role involves different capacities/training
• Compensations are distinct (hierarchy of functions)
• Inequalities are natural/healthy because different roles must be fulfilled adequately
• Social changes slow, evolutionary, unidirectional
• These carry risks: exaggerated individualism, weakening of social norms
• Individual part of unified whole in interaction meaning social solidarity
• Social solidarity unifies society.
• Distinguished two types of solidarity:

Mechanical Solidarity

• Occurs in societies with little to no division of labor
• All individuals tend to have same roles
• Bonds of cooperation/collaboration establish as tasks or objectives don't require skills
• Primitive solidarity in rural/family context

Organic Solidarity

• Predominates in modern, complex societies
• Division of labor specialized
• Individuals fill roles/functions
• Social cohesion based on interdependence, mutual need
• Restitutive law seeks to repair occurred damage, common
• Society seeks to maintain cooperation, order through regulation of interactions
• Individual is social and natural, determined by reality
• This imposes norms, beliefs, feelings

Max Webber (1864-1920)

• German sociologist, economist, historian, philosopher
• Considered a founder of modern sociology
• Work characterized by deep reflection on modern society, power, rationalization
• Opposed positivist view of sociology which looks for universal laws, and pushed for interpretive, comprehensive approach
• Human behavior not automatic response to stimuli but influenced by meanings/motivations
• Emphasized analysis of subject’s "social action" for studying/explaining society
• This also rescues decisions, subjectivity
• Subjects free to carry out actions, transform environment
• Sociolocy should be interpretively understand social action, study the relation between self and society
• Focus on symbolic communication processes between social actions
• Object of study is social action
• Social actors present social action through qualitative methods
• Analysis of conversations in social settings, considering that language is principal means of communication
• Change depends on how people behave

Social Action

• Considers the presence and behavior of others
• Occurs with intention and specific meaning in mind
• Types of social action that are models: traditional, affective, rationality concerning values, action with arrangement to ends

Rational Action Arranged to Ends

• Individual chooses rational means to achieve goals
• Based on calculating costs/benefits to achieve desired results
• Ex: Respecting traffic signs that prevent accident

Rational Action Arranged to Values

• Individual follows principles/personal values, regardless of practical results
• Motivated by beliefs, ethics, ideology
• Ex: Respecting traffic signs to avoid hurting someone

Affective Action

• Driven by intense emotions and feelings
• Individual acts with their emotions without considering consequences
• Ex: Working as police officer due to family tradition

Traditional Action

• Actions performed by inertia or in accordance with customs, norms, traditions established in a society
• Based on continuity, repetition of past practices
• Ex: Crying when you are emotional

Education

• Has a field limited by relating system with social structure
• Each educative system looks help youth install self, structural influence on someone
• The elite or group imposes political government, corresponding ideal education

Three Central Aspects

• Structural relation between church/school
• Different types of education
• Relations between school, bureaucracy
• Capitalist organization encourages bureaucracy
• Dominance is thanks to knowing: represents rational main or specific character
• Bureaucracy looks increase power through the knowledge of service, professional secret
• Social relation is a plural behavior presenting mutually directed, oriented by reciprocity
• Consists of possibility that it can act socially in an indictable form; being indifferent where the probability rests.
• Power is a men's domain, based on legitimate coercion
• Domination is probability of obedience inside a group for specific mandates.
• There are three types of legitimazed domination:

Rational Character

• Based on rules established by the association
• Obedience, within this type, is due to rules defending authority
• The leader orients provisions by these rules.
• Ex: A judge who imposes the law before a case

Traditional Character

• Based on belief in the sanctity of orders and inherited powers of command from distant times
• This type bases mandate in tradition, habits sacred for the dominated not provoke resistance.
• Ex: Dad is a police officer, and take the same job.

Charismatic Character

• Based in extra-everyday delivery to sanctity, heroism or exemplariness of a person and orders created or revealed by it
• Social change is due to the result of class struggle, things change. Changing power relations results from who wins the fight.
• Education is a device of state that molds human beings, social action. Views schools a collective action
• Because it is an organization at service of the ruling classes it will reproduce conditions of domination.
• Sociology is the class struggle
• Class society is collection of all who share social tradition with means of production
• Historical materialism considers base of society is economics
• Relations of production determine dominant structure plus ideology
• History is a process of class struggle where classes come in conflict by the control of production means
• Each historical epoque productve forces (production means, plus technology and job force) enter in contradiction with relations
• Production, such as social ones that rule property plus control, generate tensions ending with social revolution transforms society structure

Modes of Production

• Primitive Communism: Simple productive forces with production relations based incommon ownership
• No classes nor exploitation
• Slavery: Productive forces develop using slave labor
• Relations based in slave ownership plus explotation
• Feudalism: Productive forces distinguished by agriculture, cattle
• Relations based in serfs, working the land for the lord
• Capitalism: Develop forces through industry, modern technology
• Relations bases on private ownership, force sale
• Socialism: Mode of ownership relying production control
• Forms of production influence all sides of society.

Class Structure

• Each mode creates division, with contradictions.
• Example of capitalists are bourgeoisie, proletariat are in conflict
• State influence comes from labor influence/relations
• Culture is moral, art, religion and political side
• Alienation is the separation in capitalism

Work Domination

• Worker separated from process and feels simple and salary is needed
• Product, and fellow people are less needed

Alienation of Labor

• Worker feels cut off
• Satisfatcion/creativity are not guaranteed
• The product, companion, person is lost due to capitalism in a way

Socialism

• To introduce process that finds to generate/stimulate individual traits
• Norms are meant to lead to proper behavior with no other to sanction
• Looks convice to control
• There are 2 types of process

Primary Process

• The 1st instituion transmits authority in a heterogenous order

Secondary Process

• Institutions transmit measure, add habits, values and behaviors
• High school marks 3 to 18 for four year plans
• This moldes communication, uniform, language and behavior
• social control ensures individuals regularly complete norms
• Is a process, it chastise conducts. School prepares education as key element
• Social education leads workers to an important function
• School sets standards for jobs
• School offer knowledge for work, personal effort

Schools

• Pass the time working
• In its first student construction, behave collectively and expect citizens behavior
• The citizen's form is social, government is political
• The school creates value and knowledge
• There are levels of equality, in knowledge distribution

Meritocracy

• Orientated by wealth, prestige from competition to determine each luck

Ideological Apparatus of State

• Altusser defines the states dominance as domination and enforcement not power
• The device looks the domination
• They function as the education system and are moral

School System

• Are heterogeneous and private
• The reproduction are to avoid violence Infraestructure has economy to product 2 groups, the justice, moral and political sides
• The structer contains 2 floors
• Capitalism in France shows how the system can be unificative
• The teaching is to pass the knowledge and learn disti
• The context is always different with barriers and problems
• The teaching must teach everyone
• School becomes an unique site/group
• In upper levels knowledge changes
• School selects society ranges and clases
• School marks people on what goes on.

Industrialization

• Seperates classes
• Ford explains the job sharing to save time and make it specific to tasks
• The third part of education gives information and globalization
• Some logos learn better
• It depends on school to save student education, to see the need of everyone

Jurco

• He states the school is a ideological device reproduction, dominates society, and integrates students
• There there is resistance in a sector, the school reproduces practices with colecitivity
• Has 2 types of students

Colleagues

• Teen workers try to build resistance
• Make fun of students
• Teachers try to dominate
• This creates and shows the reality that is in the work place

Those are against school, but show strength

• The hole ear students benefit
• There are 2 teacher types

Traditional

• They reproduce knowledge compettitevely

Humanistas

• They promote democracy, choose subjects, have feelings and help and transmite knowledge