Sociological Theory

Sociological Theory

by Abhijit Kundu
Released January 2011
Publisher(s): Pearson India
ISBN: 9788131799857

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Book description

Sociological Theory is an attempt to trace the development of sociological theory from the classical to the modern period. A comprehensive and balanced introduction, it studies all the important thinkers chronologically so that the students can locate the continuity as well as the discontinuity of thoughts and themes. A concise formative background of every thinker is outlined in the text to entice the reader to take a deeper plunge into the theories. The introductory chapter tries to sketch the broad outlines of the classical sociological theories whereas the concluding chapter examines the thematic shifts and the inter-linkage between all the theories from the classical to contemporary period. All chapters are pedagogically rich with glossary, keywords and discussion points. The language is lucid and comprehensible and the treatment of the text is such that it develops an appreciation for the subject.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Contents
  4. About the Author
  5. Preface
  6. 1. Introduction: Origins of Sociological Theory
    1. From Speculative to Definitive
    2. Age of Enlightenment
    3. The Revolutions
    4. Organic Analogy and Evolutionism
    5. Basic Ideas of Sociological Theory
    6. Key Words
    7. Glossary
    8. Discussion Points
  7. 2. Karl Heinrich Marx (1818–83)
    1. A Biographical Sketch
    2. Materialist Conception of History
    3. Against Crude Materialism
    4. Dialectics
    5. Laws of Dialectics
    6. Metaphors of Base and Superstructure
    7. Stages of History
    8. Theory of Capitalism
    9. Commodity
    10. Labour Theory of Value
    11. Commodity Fetishism
    12. Surplus Value
    13. Accumulation Process
    14. Crisis of Capitalism
    15. Summary
    16. Key Words
    17. Glossary
    18. Discussion Points
  8. 3. Emile Durkheim (1858–1917)
    1. A Biographical Sketch
    2. Social and Intellectual Influences
    3. Method of Study
    4. Rules for Sociological Study
    5. Explanation, Causality and Comparative Method
    6. Mechanical and Organic Solidarity
    7. Conscience Collective: Crime and Punishment
    8. Abnormal Forms of Division of Labour
    9. Sociology of Suicide
    10. Typology of Suicide
    11. Egoistic Suicide
    12. Altruistic Suicide
    13. Anomic Suicide
    14. Summary
    15. Key Words
    16. Glossary
    17. Discussion Points
  9. 4. Max Weber (1864–1920)
    1. A Biographical Sketch
    2. Intellectual Background
    3. Method of Sociology
    4. Verstehen Sociology
    5. Social Action
    6. Ideal Types
    7. Rationality
    8. Role of Ideas in History
    9. Spirit of Capitalism
    10. The Protestant Ethic
    11. Summary
    12. Key Words
    13. Glossary
    14. Discussion Points
  10. 5. Vilfredo Pareto (1848–1923)
    1. Social and Intellectual Influence
    2. Society in Equilibrium
    3. Non-logical Action
    4. Elite Theory: Circulation of Elites
    5. Summary
    6. Key Words
    7. Glossary
    8. Discussion Points
  11. 6. Functional School of Thought
    1. Intellectual Influences on Functionalism
    2. Herbert Spencer
    3. Emile Durkheim
    4. The Anthropological Tradition
    5. Talcott Parsons
    6. Social Action Theory
    7. System Analysis
    8. Functional Requisites
    9. Pattern Variables
    10. Functional Imperatives
    11. Robert King Merton (1910–2003)
    12. Critique of Orthodox Functionalism
    13. Theories of the Middle Range
    14. An Alternative Paradigm for Functional Analysis
    15. Summary
    16. Key Words
    17. Glossary
    18. Discussion Points
  12. 7. Conflict Theory
    1. Karl Marx
    2. Max Weber
    3. George Simmel
    4. Lewis Coser (1913–2003)
    5. Social and Intellectual Influences
    6. Functional-conflict Theory
    7. Beyond Organismic Analogy
    8. C. Wright Mills (1916–62)
    9. Social and Intellectual Influence
    10. Power
    11. Intellectual Craftsmanship
    12. Ralph Dahrendorf
    13. Against the Equilibrium Model
    14. Imperatively Coordinated Associations and Conflict
    15. Summary
    16. Key Words
    17. Glossary
    18. Discussion Points
  13. 8. Symbolic Interactionism
    1. Charles Horton Cooley (1864–1929)
    2. Looking-glass Self
    3. George Herbert Mead: A Brief Biography and Influences
    4. The Social
    5. The Mind
    6. The Self
    7. Development of the Self: ‘I’; and ‘Me’;
    8. Social Experience and the Act
    9. Herbert Blumer (1900–87)
    10. Symbolic Interactionism as a Perspective
    11. Erving Goffman (1922–82)
    12. Summary
    13. Key Words
    14. Glossary
    15. Discussion Points
  14. 9. Social Exchange Theory
    1. Intellectual Roots
    2. George C. Homans (1910–89)
    3. Peter Blau (1918–2002)
    4. Summary
    5. Key Words
    6. Glossary
    7. Discussion Points
  15. 10. Phenomenology and Ethnomethodology
    1. Edmund Husserl
    2. Alfred Schutz (1899–1959)
    3. Beyond Weber';s notion of social action
    4. Peter Ludwig Berger (1929– )
    5. Harold Garfinkel (1917–2011)
    6. Summary
    7. Key Words
    8. Glossary
    9. Discussion Points
  16. 11. Critical Theory
    1. Intellectual and Social Background
    2. Culture Industry
    3. Georg Lukacs (1885–1971)
    4. Max Harkheimer and Theodor Adorno
    5. Herbert Marcuse (1898–1979)
    6. Jurgen Habermas (1929)
    7. Summary
    8. Key Words
    9. Glossary
    10. Discussion Points
  17. 12. Post-modern Theory and Post-structural Sociology
    1. Daniel Bell';s Post-industrial Society
    2. Post-modern Theory
    3. Basic Themes in Post-modern Thought
    4. Michel Foucault (1926–84)
    5. Jacques Derrida (1930–2004)
    6. Jean-Francois Lyotard (1924–98)
    7. Knowledge and Post-modern Condition
    8. Zygmunt Bauman (1925– )
    9. Jean Baudrillard (1929– 2007)
    10. Pierre Bourdieu (1930–2002)
    11. Summary
    12. Key Words
    13. Glossary
    14. Discussion Points
  18. 13. Conclusion
    1. Individual and Society
    2. Summary
  19. Bibliography
  20. Copyright

Product information

  • Title: Sociological Theory
  • Author(s): Abhijit Kundu
  • Release date: January 2011
  • Publisher(s): Pearson India
  • ISBN: 9788131799857