SOC101 Chapter Notes -Georg Simmel, Class Consciousness, George Herbert Mead
21 Aug 2013
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People responsible for creating social world around them: society could be changed through conscious reflection. Natural state: conception of human condition before emergence of formal social structures. People motivated by self interest and pursuit of power. Collective agreement is needed for peace and protection: give up some freedom to absolute authority. Argued that god was responsible for emergence of society and government. People born as a blank state: no knowledge independent of experience. People want to preserve rights to maintain property rather than individuals from warring against each other. Original state that was either warlike or peaceful. Then, people create society by agreeing to social contract that subjugated them to a government. His views: people had never existed outside or without society. Humans were defined and created by society. Persian letters : 3 types of government: republic. Human beings did exist within state of nature where people were presocial. Natural state was primitive condition before laws and morality.
