Jumar James B.

dela Cruz Social Science 3

BSA-III
PIONEERS IN THE STUDY OF SOCIOLOGY

1. Isidore Marie Auguste François Xavier Comte was a French philosopher and
writer who formulated the doctrine of positivism. He is often regarded as the first
philosopher of science in the modern sense of the term. Comte is also seen as the
founder of the academic discipline of sociology. Influenced by the utopian socialist
Henri Saint-Simon,Comte developed the positive philosophy in an attempt to remedy
the social malaise of the French Revolution, calling for a new social doctrine based
on the sciences. Comte was a major influence on 19th-century thought, influencing
the work of social thinkers such as Karl Marx, John Stuart Mill, and George Eliot. His
concept of sociologie and social evolutionism set the tone for early social theorists
and anthropologists such as Harriet Martineau and Herbert Spencer, evolving into
modern academic sociology presented by Émile Durkheim as practical and objective
social research.
2. Harriet Martineau was a British social theorist and Whig writer, often cited as the
first female sociologist. Martineau wrote many books and a multitude of essays from
a sociological, holistic, religious, domestic, and perhaps most controversially,
feminine perspective. She also translated various works by Auguste Comte, and she
earned enough to support herself entirely by her writing, a rare feat for a woman in
the Victorian era. Martineau said of her own approach to writing: "when one studies a
society, one must focus on all its aspects, including key political, religious, and social
institutions". She believed a thorough societal analysis was necessary to understand
women's status under men. The novelist Margaret Oliphant said "as a born lecturer
and politician [Martineau] was less distinctively affected by her sex than perhaps any
other, male or female, of her generation".
3. Karl Marx's critical theories about society, economics and politics – collectively
understood as Marxism – hold that human societies develop through class struggle.
In capitalism, this manifests itself in the conflict between the ruling classes (known as
the bourgeoisie) that control the means of production and the working classes
(known as the proletariat) that enable these means by selling their labour power in
return for wages. Employing a critical approach known as historical materialism, Marx
predicted that, like previous socio-economic systems, capitalism produced internal
tensions which would lead to its self-destruction and replacement by a new system:
socialism. For Marx, class antagonisms under capitalism, owing in part to its
instability and crisis-prone nature, would eventuate the working class' development of
class consciousness, leading to their conquest of political power and eventually the
establishment of a classless, communist society constituted by a free association of
producers. Marx actively pressed for its implementation, arguing that the working
class should carry out organised revolutionary action to topple capitalism and bring
about socio-economic emancipation.
4. Herbert Spencer - read with excitement the original positivist sociology of Auguste
Comte. A philosopher of science, Comte had proposed a theory of sociocultural
evolution that society progresses by a general law of three stages. Writing after
various developments in biology, however, Spencer rejected what he regarded as the
ideological aspects of Comte's positivism, attempting to reformulate social science in
terms of his principle of evolution, which he applied to the biological, psychological
and sociological aspects of the universe. Given the primacy which Spencer placed on
evolution, his sociology might be described as social Darwinism mixed
with Lamarckism. However, despite its popularity, this view of Spencer's sociology is
mistaken. While his political and ethical writings had themes consistent with social
 Darwinism, such themes are absent in Spencer's sociological works, which focus on
how processes of societal growth and differentiation lead to changing degrees of
complexity in social organization.
5. Emile Durkheim noted there are several possible pathologies that could lead to a
breakdown of social integration and disintegration of the society: the two most
important ones are anomie and forced division of labour; lesser ones include the lack
of coordination and suicide. By anomie Durkheim means a state when too rapid
population growth reduces the amount of interaction between various groups, which
in turn leads to a breakdown of understanding (norms, values, and so on. By forced
division of labour Durkheim means a situation where power holders, driven by their
desire for profit (greed), results in people doing the work they are unsuited
for.[64] Such people are unhappy, and their desire to change the system can
destabilize the society.Durkheim's views on crime were a departure from
conventional notions. He believed that crime is "bound up with the fundamental
conditions of all social life" and serves a social function. He stated that crime implies
"not only that the way remains open to necessary changes but that in certain cases it
directly prepares these changes". Examining the trial of Socrates, he argues that "his
crime, namely, the independence of his thought, rendered a service not only to
humanity but to his country" as "it served to prepare a new morality and faith that the
Athenians needed". As such, his crime "was a useful prelude to reforms". In this
sense, he saw crime as being able to release certain social tensions and so have a
cleansing or purging effect in society. He further stated that "the authority which the
moral conscience enjoys must not be excessive; otherwise, no-one would dare to
criticize it, and it would too easily congeal into an immutable form. To make progress,
individual originality must be able to express itself...[even] the originality of the
criminal... shall also be possible".
6. Max Weber's work in the field of sociology of religion started with the essay The
Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism and continued with the analysis of The
Religion of China, The Religion of India, and Ancient Judaism. His work on other
religions was interrupted by his sudden death in 1920, which prevented him from
following Ancient Judaism with studies of early Christianity and Islam. His three main
themes in the essays were the effect of religious ideas on economic activities, the
relation between social stratification and religious ideas and the distinguishable
characteristics of Western civilisation Weber saw religion as one of the core forces in
society. His goal was to find reasons for the different development paths of the
cultures of the Occident and the Orient, although without judging or valuing them, like
some of the contemporary thinkers who followed the social Darwinist paradigm;
Weber wanted primarily to explain the distinctive elements of the Western
civilisation.[84] He maintained that Calvinist (and more widely, Protestant) religious
ideas had a major impact on the social innovation and development of the economic
system of the West, but noted that they were not the only factors in this development.
Other notable factors mentioned by Weber included the rationalism of scientific
pursuit, merging observation with mathematics, science of scholarship and
jurisprudence, rational systematisation and bureaucratisation of government
administration and economic enterprise. In the end, the study of the sociology of
religion, according to Weber, focused on one distinguishing part of the Western
culture, the decline of beliefs in magic, or what he referred to as "disenchantment of
the world".Weber also proposed a socioevolutionary model of religious change,
showing that in general, societies have moved from magic to polytheism, then
to pantheism, monotheism and finally, ethical monotheism. According to Weber, this
evolution occurred as the growing economic stability allowed professionalisation and
the evolution of ever more sophisticated priesthood.
Arlene Bernal

SocSci 3

1. The French philosopher and writer Isidore Marie Auguste François Xavier Comte developed
the doctrine of positivism. In the modern sense of the term, he is often regarded as the first
philosopher of science. Comte is also perceived as the founder of the sociology academic discipline.
Influenced by the utopian socialist Henri Saint-Simon, in an attempt to remedy the social malaise of
the French Revolution, Comte developed the positive philosophy, calling for a new science-based
social doctrine. Comte was a significant impact on the thinking of the 19th century, influencing social
thinkers like Karl Marx, John Stuart Mill, and George Eliot's work. His concept of sociology and social
evolutionism set the tone for early social theorists and anthropologists like Harriet Martineau and
Herbert Spencer to evolve into modern academic sociology as practical and objective social research
presented by Émile Durkheim.

2. Harriet Martineau, often quoted as the first female sociologist, was a British social theorist
and Whig author. Martineau wrote many books and a variety of essays from a feminine view that is
sociological, holistic, religious, national, and perhaps most controversial. She also translated Auguste
Comte's numerous works and gained enough to sustain herself completely through her writing, a
rare feat for a Victorian-era female. Martineau said of her own writing strategy: "When you study a
community, you have to concentrate on all its elements, including important political, religious and
social organizations." She thought that a thorough assessment of society was essential in order to
comprehend the position of women among males. The novelist Margaret Oliphant said that "as a
born teacher and politician[ Martineau] was less influenced by her sex than any other of her
generation, male or female."

3. The critical theories of Karl Marx about culture, economics and politics–collectively known
as Marxism–maintain that human societies are developing through class battle. This manifests itself
in capitalism in the dispute between the ruling classes (known as the bourgeoisie) who regulate the
means of manufacturing and the working classes (known as the proletariat) who allow these means
by selling their labor power in exchange for salaries. Using a critical strategy known as historical
materialism, Marx anticipated that capitalism created inner tensions like prior socio-economic
structures that would lead to its self-destruction and replacement by a new system: socialism. For
Marx, class antagonisms under capitalism, due in part to its instability and nature prone to crisis,
would eventuate the growth of class consciousness by the working class, leading to its conquest of
political power and ultimately to the establishment of a classless, communist community formed by
a free association of manufacturers. Marx actively pushed for its application, arguing that organized
revolutionary action to overthrow capitalism and bring about socio-economic emancipation should
be carried out by the working class.

4. Herbert Spencer-read with enthusiasm Auguste Comte's initial positivist sociology. A science
philosopher, Comte suggested a theory of socio-cultural evolution that society advances through a
three-stage general law. However, after multiple innovations in biology, Spencer dismissed what he
considered to be the ideological elements of Comte's positivism, trying to reformulate social science
in terms of his evolutionary principle, which he applied to the universe's biological, psychological and
sociological elements. His sociology could be defined as social Darwinism mixed with Lamarckism,
given the primacy that Spencer placed on evolution. Despite its popularity, however, this view of the
sociology of Spencer is confused. While his political and ethical texts had topics consistent with
social Darwinism, such topics are missing in Spencer's sociological works, which concentrate on how
social growth and differentiation procedures lead to altering degrees of social organization
complexity.

5. Emile Durkheim observed that there are several possible pathologies that could lead to a
breakdown of social integration and social disintegration: the two most significant ones are anomy
and compelled division of labor; the lower ones are absence of coordination and suicide. By anomie
Durkheim implies a state in which too fast population growth decreases the quantity of
communication between different communities, which in turn leads to a breakdown of knowledge
(standards, values, etc.). By compulsory division of labor Durkheim implies a scenario in which
energy owners, driven by their desire for gain (greed), result in individuals doing the job they are
unfit for. He thought that crime is "linked to the basic circumstances of all social life" and serves a
purpose of society. He said crime means "not only that the way stays open to needed modifications,
but that it prepares these changes directly in certain instances." Examining Socrates ' trial, he claims
that "his crime, namely the independence of his thinking, rendered service not only to humanity but
to his nation" as "it served to prepare a fresh morality and faith required by the Athenians." His
crime, therefore, "was a helpful prelude to reform." He saw crime as being able to release certain
social tensions in this sense and thus have a cleaning or purging impact in culture. He further stated
that "the power enjoyed by the moral conscience must not be excessive; otherwise, no one would
dare to criticize it, and it would congeal in an immutable form too readily. In order to make progress,
individual originality must be prepared to express itself... [even] the originality of the criminal... will
also be feasible."

6. Max Weber's work in the field of religious sociology began with the essay The Protestant
Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism and continued with the analysis of China's Religion, India's
Religion, and Ancient Judaism. His work on other religions was disrupted by his sudden 1920 death,
which stopped him from pursuing Ancient Judaism with early Christianity and Islam research. His
three primary topics in the essays were the impact on financial operations of religious thoughts, the
relationship between social stratification and religious thoughts, and the distinctive features of
Western civilization Weber saw religion as one of the key forces in culture. His goal was to find
reasons for the different paths of development of the cultures of the Occident and the Orient,
although without judging or valuing them, like some of the contemporary thinkers who followed the
social Darwinist paradigm; Weber wanted to explain primarily the distinctive elements of Western
civilization.[84] He maintained that Calvinist (and, more broadly, Protestant) religious and religious.
Other noteworthy variables listed by Weber included the rationalism of scientific pursuit, combining
observation with mathematics, scholarship and jurisprudence science, rational systematization and
bureaucratisation of government and economic enterprise. In the end, Weber's study of the
sociology of religion focused on one distinguishing part of Western culture, the decline of belief in
magic, or what he called "the disenchantment of the world."Weber also proposed a socio-
evolutionary model of religious change, showing that societies generally moved from magic to
polytheism, then to pantheism, monotheism and finally to pantheism. This evolution happened,
according to Weber, as the increasing financial stability enabled professionalization and the
evolution of ever more advanced priesthood.