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Lesson 4

SOCIETY AS
AN OBJECTIVE
REALITY
Professor Rolando Herrero
no man is an island
THE CONCEPT OF SOCIETY
AS AN OBJECTIVE REALITY
• The term society came from the Latin word
"societas" which was derived from the
noun 'socius' which means friend, comrade
or ally. It is used to describe a bond of
interaction between people.

zoon
• Aristotle said that human beings are
politikan or political animals. That
is, human beings are creatures whose
nature is for them to live in a society or a
group.
The concept of
society as an
objective reality
Society is also called "nation-
states" when sociologists talk about
society. Today, with the advent of
globalization, sociologists question
the fundamental importance given to
the society. Globalization tends to
integrate societies in a world system
that weakens society's territorial
boundaries.
 a common opinion for people is the belief
that society exists only for the individuals
who compose it. The methodological
individualism states that collective

Methodological
concepts such as groups, associations
or societies do not exist, but only the
individual members.

individualism • Example, the army as a collective group

does not exist, except for the soldiers
composing it. A class does not exist but
only the students and the teachers
composing it.
 Emile Durkheim's Sociological
Realism
states that society is reality "sui generis”" and
cannot be reduced to individual aggregates or
parts. He also argued that one cannot invent new
language out of nowhere but when it is already
used in a society where an individual is born.

Example, one can deny the

existence of the banking system,
but one cannot go to the bank and
deposit scratch papers without
experiencing formal sanctions.
DURKEIM
ARGUMENT OF THE
SOCIETY WAS
EXPLAINED IN HIS
CLASSIC WORK
"SUICIDE"
He showed that the external
constraints of society
worked through control
mechanism that either
prevented people from
committing suicide or made
them prone to suicide. If a
group or society has strong
solidarity or sense of
belonginess, the individual
is most likely to attach
himself to society.
ANOMIE
• Strong regulation of the
individual in a society
ensures that the members
properly follow the norms
prescribed. The situation in
which society lacks social
regulation norm is called
anomie.

• But, excessive regulation

however can also lead to
higher suicide rates.
Example, when a certain
group prescribes altruism
among the members or self-
sacrifice for the collective
like suicide bombers or
Japanese kamikazee pilots.
TYPES OF SUICIDE
SOCIETY IS AN
OBJECTIVE REALITY
The objectivity of society extends to all its
constituent elements. Institutions, roles and
identities exist as objectively real phenomena
in the social world. The institutions is there,
external and coercive, imposing predefined
patterns upon the individual in this particular
area of his life.
Social Reproduction on
how Societies Persist
R E P R OD UC T I ON
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TWO TYPES OF INSTITUTIONS THAT REPRODUCE
THE CONDITION OF SOCIAL LIFE
 From a structural functionalist perspective,
social reproduction is carried out through
four functional pre-requisites by Talcott
Parsons, one of the most influential American
sociologists.
 From a structural functionalist perspective,
social reproduction is carried out through
four functional pre-requisites by Talcott
Parsons, one of the most influential American
sociologists.
THANK YOU