Sociology 2240E Lecture Notes - Sui Generis, Social Fact, Mechanical And Organic Solidarity
16 Nov 2012
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He"s from a french jewish family: declined from being a rabbi he rejected it wanted to be a brain. Started teaching at bordeaux in 1887: established the first of france"s sociology departments. But we have our social goals: and these are crafted by society. So why do different individuals have different desires. Epistemology (how do we acquire knowledge: scientific rationalism, not by analysing individuals, but by analysing structures. Similar to marx, with an emphasis on social structures: the structures matter more than individuals. Ex. if people are going to leave a room you look at the room, you don"t ask them why they left that way. When individuals interact together over time they create institutions: institutions operate to shape social interaction, these institutions are an echo of the standards that have already existed. That"s pretty depressing: ex. people follow grass that"s worn down because people have walked that way even if it"s not the most direct route.
