FSS:SOC183 The Sociological Imagination - Course Information

SOC183 The Sociological Imagination and Contemporary Society

Extent and Intensity

1/1/0. 10 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).

Teacher(s)

Mgr. Benjamin Jeremiah Vail, Ph.D., M.Sc. (lecturer)

Guaranteed by

doc. PhDr. Ing. Radim Marada, Ph.D.
Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Ing. Soňa Enenkelová

Timetable

Tue 14:00–15:40 U32

Course Enrolment Limitations

The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 60 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/60, only registered: 0/60, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/60

fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with

there are 10 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display

Course objectives

This course introduces many of the major schools of thought and topics of research in the field of Sociology. We take an historical view of the development of social theory from the 19th century until today. Students will learn about the many developments in social thought, in particular sociological theory, during this time by reading textbooks as well as primary source materials. C. Wright Mills’ classic book, The Sociological Imagination, will provide one frame for looking at the development of sociological theory and praxis up to recent years.

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

- Recall and relate sociological theories and approaches that have developed over time
- Identify and explain major contemporary and historical sociological theories and their relations to individual lifestyle and social history
- Interpret the significance of sociological issues in their daily lives

Syllabus

• The weekly schedule of lectures is as follows:
• Week 1 - Introduction to Sociology and the Sociological Imagination
• Week 2 - Conflict theory
• Week 3 - Marxian theory
• Week 4 - The rational/utilitarian tradition
• Week 5 - The Durkheimian tradition
• Week 6 - The microinteractionist tradition
• Week 7 - Contemporary sociological theory, Parsons and Merton
• Week 8 - No class: reading week
• Week 9 - Mid-term exam
• Week 10 - Micro-macro integration, Structure-Agency integration
• Week 11 - Social construction of reality
• Week 12 - Modernity and post-modernity
• Week 13 - Critical theory, Structuralism and Feminist social theory
• Week 14 - The Sociological Imagination
• Literature includes, but is not limited to:
• Collins, R. 1994. Four sociological traditions. New York: Oxford University Press.
• Durkheim, E. “What is a social fact?” pp. 50-59 in The Rules of the Sociological Method
• Farganis, J. 2007. Readings in social theory. New York: McGraw-Hill.
• Giddens, A. 2002. Sociology. 4th edition, Cambridge. Polity Press Goffman
• Held,”Introduction to Habermas,” pp. 402-406 in Giddens, A. 2002 Sociology: Introductory Readings, Oxford: Polity Press.
• Mills, C.W. 2000. The Sociological Imagination. Oxford University Press.
• Ritzer, G. 2000. Sociological Theory. London. McGraw-Hill Education.

Literature

• COLLINS, Randall. Four sociological traditions. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994, xi, 321. ISBN 0195082087. info
• MILLS, C. Wright. The sociological imagination. 1st ed. New York: Grove Press, 1961, 324 s. info

Teaching methods

Teaching takes place in the form of weekly lectures.

Assessment methods

Students are expected to read the assigned literature before class and to attend every lecture. Each student's final evaluation (A-F) for the semester is based on the following components:

50% – Mid-term exam
50% – Final exam

Language of instruction

English

Further comments (probably available only in Czech)

Study Materials
The course is taught annually.

• Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2009, recent)
  
• Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2009/SOC183