In the origins of sociology there are four major revolutions, which are all related to western societies. As each revolution changes it has many new ideas that rise out of it, but it also has some old ones that will fall. For example as the first agricultural revolution was happening it was creating the rise of the idea of surplus in food. Then as time goes on the idea of surplus is still there, it is just old news now. This is because things like villages had started to form due to advances in agricultural and no longer having to be nomadic. Out of villages come new ideas, like social classes and commercialism. When changes are made to society it creates new rises, and with the new rises there come falls of things that once were held important to the society. Within every revolution there are certain social factors that have an impact on their making. All of the revolutions social systems are connected interdependently, so as ones social factors change it then relates to the next changes to come. For the agricultural revolution some social factors that are related to it are things like community factors. Now with the development of cities in this age more people are living close together. Those people can then share ideas with one another, which then creates even more new social factors. Another one would be the domestication of animals, …show more content…
and also use of farming techniques, created and economic surplus. Some of the social factors related to this is not everyone had to grow their own food to survive. Lifestyles changed dramatically when people could buy their food from others. Now, many people were doing other jobs like commercialism, which started other social changes. With these social factors came a whole new revolution. The scientific revolution had its own social factors that related to it. One factor is the beginning of commercialism resulted in big change to social factors. Now the top of the classes were the merchants, who were put in charge of experimenting with anything they could find. Having them do this lead to many discoveries that changed humans views of the world, and thus produced new social changes. Also with the Catholic Church dominating the feudal society they kept the peasants to the working class, because they obeyed the church. This lead to the revolutionary commercial class, which is completely different from before. Then in the democratic revolution people started studying man as a part of nature. During this “enlightenment” period ideas turned to individualism. This led to drastic changes in social factors because now people wanted individual human rights, they wanted freedoms. This was not just a few people. This was now all classes, including the peasants. In the last revolution the peasants finding consciousness of who they were rose up, and then became the middle class. In the industrial revolution some social factors that are related to it are things like the eight hour a day, 5 day work week. The workers complained about working conditions in the factories, which lead to them giving this type of work week. When people started doing this social factors changed from working all the time to having a “weekend”. After this the entertainment started to get grow due to people now wanting to go out and spend their money. This was a significant change from all the revolutions before. The agricultural revolution consisted of many different parts. The first is the development of modern agricultural. Before this revolution people survived by hunting and gathering, so most peoples had to be nomadic to follow their food source. The revolution first brought in the development of domesticating animals for a food source, and also planting a more monoculture crop like corn or wheat. This produced a surplus of both food sources, and then also allowed people to settle into stationary villages to live. Then the small villages grew and quickly became cities where ideas, technology, and commercialism could develop better. The second part of this revolution is about the empires that emerged. As cities were made so were rulers of those cities. The Roman Empire started to come to power and take over many cities like Athens, Egypt, and the Ottoman. As they gained more power so did the Catholic Church. Eventually the Roman Empire ended up collapsing, and this then lead to society completely changing. After this system fell the land became governed by lords. They were in charge of the new feudal society. The majority of people were peasants who worked labor for the kingdom. When commercial cities started to emerge, even more people left the feudal society. This eventually led to the demise of the feudal society. While in the society, more science and artists started to emerge. This propelled the next revolution. When the scientific revolution started the feudal system was at its demise.
The Catholic Church was in charge of most of the western people. They also pair artists to work for the church, but at this time the artists had to paint what the church wanted. This led to few new ideas being shared. During this time period life was centralized around the church, but other things were still happening. For instance, the merchant class was very dominant during this revolution. They did a lot of exploring around the world, which started new experiments and theories that would shatter the church’s grasp on people in the next
revolution. In the democratic revolution much of the newly discovered science and ideas escaped into the public. The Catholic Church had to change its ways on society to deal with the new information that was exposed. With people not as focused on the church they started focusing on individualism. Things like human rights and the fact that humans need to go after their own individual goals. The enlightenment, or democratic, revolution brought about the thought of one’s consciousness. It is about being aware of one’s self, and then seeing how you can then relate to society. The enlightenment was the first time anyone started applying early sociology ideas to their lives. With all the new ideas about individualism, people started exploring their own paths of work. That line of choice of job led to the fourth revolution. At the start of the industrial revolution most people were still agriculturally based. As food became more abundant, man could then pursue other things. That is how the industrial revolution started. Many products like steel and clothes could now be mass produced. When more factories started developing they created cities around them where people who worked in them could live. Most of the people in this revolution had adequate living conditions compared to before, so things were better for people. The only downside was factories were in competition with each other, so the workday started getting longer to compete with other businesses outputs. This forced worked into a social system where all they did was work. That is not life for people, so they eventually had pickets that got workers the five day work week. After that people could work hard during the week, and then go home or out on the weekend to enjoy themselves. After this happened the revolution entered a state of modernity. Sociology comes about in the 19th century during the enlightenment period. This is because at the time people were starting to think about individualism. That thought made them think about the world of social relations around them, which is sociology. What made sociology become even bigger in the 19th century was the French revolution. Many new ideas came from this which sparked changes in how people perceived things. Other things that had an impact on why sociology emerged were things like modernity and urbanization. Urbanization brought people together to collaborate on ideas they have about society. The conservative response in France due to the rise of sociology was the government being taken away and the country returning to a religious order. It was focused on family values, and tradition. As well as the biggest one which was religion. The conservative response became a fear of change, because they liked how stable society was. Compare and contrast Marx, Durkheim, and Weber. Explain to the reader the strengths and weakness of each theoretical perspective. How does each theory explain social change? Use the readings in answering this question. What are the benefits of knowing how society seems to operate from each one of these theoretical positions? All three of the great philosophers had one important thing in common. They were all trying to figure out what was at the root of the social world. All wanted to make their own assumptions of why society is the way it is. Weber and Marx also agreed that to a certain degree people are bound to pursue their own interests. However, Marx believed more that people are always going to fight with one another. He states that they will forever be in conflict for things like resources and goods. That is one reason why he opposed the capitalist government. He thought communism was the best, because all of the goods would be distributed equally. After that all the conflict would be taken care of, and thus a perfect society. Marx also argued that money and things of that nature have a part in shaping up. He came up with two classes. The proletariat, and the bourgeois. He wanted the lower class, known as proletariats, to rise up against the people in charge who exploit them. Class consciousness was something that was stressed in his writings. He wanted people to realize who they are, and that they are dominated by the higher class who should have no authority over them. Durkheim had a different theory. He focused on how society is shaped by relationships that we make with others. His organic solidarity statement even says that society is characterized by interdependence. Argues that society is usually without conflict. Social norms are to all cooperate with one another. The norms are what guides people’s behavior in the right path. Durkheim’s theory of social change is division of labor. The third philosopher Weber, had many ideas concerning society was becoming more rationalist over time. He thought that economics, and culture are what shapes the society. He goes into detail about how the Protestant reformation brought around different values that are more focused on how giving money away is sinful. He said that due to this hoarding of money the Protestants later invested in the economy and propelled society. Some of the strengths about Marx’s theoretical position is with his ideas it would be very easy to fix society. He states that conflict is over resources, and the answer is equally sharing of the resources, as in communism. The strength in his theory is that it offers a bright outlook about society getting along, as long as the working class is in charge and people are equal. However, communism does not work this way. His idea was great, but the execution of his plan was never fulfilled. There is always something to interrupt his perfect utopia, like a power hungry person who abuses the system of communism. Durkheim’s ideas about how people are interdependent on others is an important strength of his theory. When people are dependent on one another it creates much less conflict. The other thing that is good about his ideas is that they show that class conflict is not a social norm. Also an important strength to his theory is that at first he thought the transition between mechanical and organic solidarity was anomic. The thing that strengthens his theory is he corrects himself saying that he was wrong, and anomie has become a major irreplaceable part of society.
A revolution takes place when a group does not agree with the current government and the policies they have in place. In some cases, revolutions turn violent during the attempt to overthrow the government. This is exactly what took place during the French Revolution, 1789 and the Bolshevik Revolution, 1917. Overall both revolutions found the beginning in the poor. The poor struggled under the rule of the monarchy; there was a strain on resources and high taxes. There were famine and food shortages due to bad weather, and WW1 respectively. In France, the nobility, first and second estates, did not have to pay these high taxes which further angered the poor. Both French and Russian nobility and monarchy were to blame for the suffering experienced. In the French and Bolshevik Revolutions there were philosophical ideas that guided the people to put a stop to their suffering, these ideas fueled extremist groups that brought upon violence and overall the goal of these Revolutions were not permanent. French and Bolshevik Revolutions had revolutionary ideas that went hand in hand with revolutionary violence and ultimately left the countries in chaos for some time after.
The Revolution ultimately occurred because of a growing conflict between the old system ( feudalism ) where land ownership was the basis of privileged position within society. The old system was becoming obsolete because of increase in power of the bourgeoisie ( capitalism). Class Conflict is the engine that drove the French Revolution since the modern bourgeois society that has arose from the ruins of feudal society has not done away with class competition The Revolution only established new classes, new conditions of oppression, new forms of struggle in place of the old ones. The feudal system of industry, in which industrial production was monopolize no longer was sufficed for the growing demands of the new system. The manufacturing system took its place. Capitalism (where the wealth was in the possession of a few people who used their wealth to buy labor and create even more wealth for themselves), would become increasingly reliant on the workers. The significance of the Revolution according to Marx and Engels is in society, relations and forces get along, but when the forces (technology) improve, people try to exploit it, and the old modes of production become a hinderance. Tension builds over this, revolution occurs, break happens, and a new economy is
Surely each of these options is viable in answering the question posed. However, neither "industrial revolution" nor "political revolution" is the best of all possible answers for these questions. Thus, one must consider the matter to a greater depth. In reference to the first question-the instantaneous results of a revolution-political revolutions are more important to history. As a certain history teacher at Delran High School pointed out, the newspaper headlines of 1794 may be used as an example of this.
The French Revolution was a period of upheaval in France, during which the French governmental structure and Catholic clergy underwent a large change due to Enlightenment ideas. The commoners of France began to revolt after hearing the ideas of famous philosophes like Voltaire. Voltaire was a deist who believed that the Catholic Church and its doctrines were not to be trusted since they used propoganda to get followers rather than the actual religion. He believed it was unfair that there wasn’t any religious freedom since you were expected to be a Catholic. He spoke openly about this, which of course got him into a lot of trouble. Nevertheless, the French commoners took his word into thought and decided to act upon what he said by revolting against the church. Voltaire’s ideas also critized royal absolutism because they had, in his opinion, too much power. He favored an elightened absolutist, which is an absolutist who adopts Enlightenment ideas. Once again, the French commoners took this to heart and agreed with Voltaire that the French government was too ...
The revolution led to new theories and advances in the social, economic, and science areas which helped change the world in a short period of time. There were both positive and negative effects on society and the economy, but the positive outweighed the negative. Many jobs were created, better and more efficient means of transportation were invented, which allowed new areas to be reached and
The French Revolution impacted society by allowing the people to have rights and the ability to not be controlled and taken advantage of by the Aristocracies. Regardless of the work performed, each person and family would have their needs met so that nobody would suffer without food, shelter or medical care. It took years for the French Revolution to come to an end. Hundreds of thousands of lives were lost so that the survivors could obtain a better life for themselves and future generations. People whom thought that they could not make a change or a difference became inspired by the wisdom of the philosophers. The philosophers promoted education and intelligence through many different aspects. Most importantly, the people were taught how to stand up for what they believed in and not to be controlled or intimidated by the society that ranked above them in power, wealth and control. The French Revolution did indeed bring about philosophical and political changes, and most certainly promoted the growth of a new
Just as any story has a climax; one can deduce that the 17th and 18th centuries were the turning point for most of European history; however, different places experienced this change in different ways. As the previous discoveries and inventions were made by remarkable scientists like Galileo, the Enlightenment was the next logical step in the era. As incredible philosophers like Jean- Jacques Rousseau along with John Locke stepped in, people all over Europe began to realize the importance and even the mere concept of reason and natural rights granted to all persons. Apart from the common impact of the Enlightenment on all of Europe, France further experienced a drastic change in terms of society as well as finance, leading to the mark of a new beginning- The French Revolution. Due to a hierarchical system in France, a vast opposition by the nobility and the commoners grew regarding the old order, which led to take an action against the monarchical regime. As a result of a faster growth in consumer prices over wages, the next scenario was the economic fall of society that included taxes, food shortages and unemployment rates. As the necessity for a rebellion became crucial due to the lack of privilege towards the commoners, with the financial collapse of the French society, coupled with the lasting impact of the philosophes, the main causes of the French Revolution were the unequal hierarchy of the estate system, the growing economic crises, and the ideologies of the Enlightenment.
The French Revolution was a civil revolt that broke out in France against the absolute monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church, which lasted from 1789-1799. This resulted in the establishment of France as a republic, democratic government and caused the Roman Catholic Church’s necessity, as well as its power to be questioned. The French Revolution ended the thousand-year rule of the monarchy in France and began when King Louis XVI gathered representatives from the 3 social groups called the Clergy, the Nobilities and the Commoners to solve a great national debt and economic crisis France was experiencing.
After reviewing the article titles given for this first assignment, I believe they indicate that Sociology, generally speaking, is not only a study of diversity or commonality in traits among people; it is also a science about factors in a person’s life and how these factors culminate responses. Interestingly enough, its topics of concern seem to be directly determined by current and common events of the world. Through the invention and expansion of new ideas, popular trends and fashions through time, Sociology adapts to responsibly to service the very subjects of interest it studies; for, even the slightest change of a person’s daily experience can have an insurmountable impact on attitude, personal growth, family dynamics and basic group behavior.
Modernity. A major sociological concept that explains social change would be modernity. Modernity explains the changes in social patterns that result in a nation industrializing (Macionis, Jansson, & Benoit, 2009). Since the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan, the Afghan people have been struggling to make social improvements to their living conditions (Kowaluk & Staples, 2008). The current Afghan government held by Hamid Karzai has been generally unpopular because the changes to living conditions have been very slow (Kow...
Emile Durkheim, considered the 'Father of Sociology ' asked how society was possible rather than just how society had changed, which is Conflict Theorist and Sociologist, Max Webers ' theory in Sociology.
The social conditions that people lived in, in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were of the greatest significance of the production of sociology, the different problems and social disorder that resulted from the series of political revolutions escorted in by the French Revolution in 1789 distressed many early social theorists, when they eventually came to the conclusion that it was impossible to return to the old order , they wanted to find new sources of order in societies that had been disturbed by the different dramatic political changes.
Auguste Comte (Newman 2010) pointed out the need to keep society unified as many traditions were diminishing. He created the term sociology. Auguste Comte suggests that sociology is the product of a three-stage development.
In the text, the author breaks a timeline into three categories. First, category is Horticultural societies. This involved the development of a more extensive division of labor, larger populations, more permanent residence, and a greater incidence of war. Second, category is Agrarian societies. An Agrarian society is the discovery of metallurgy, the invention of the plow, and the development of the state, and a decline in the pace of development of new innovations. Third, category is Industrial societies. Industrial societies are the development of the steam engine. This industrial revolution was associated with urbanization and change in the economy and the political world.
Historical sociology is a discipline which combines the past and the present in order to find the implications of the things happening today, for the future. This practice was born along with the emergence of sociology in the 16th century with the rise of the era that sociology aimed to explain. Modernity brought multiple historical changes that have transformed Europe; sociology was created in order to explain these changes, their origins and their potential effects on the future of the continent. Consequently, with this kind of process in mind, we can see that the role of historical sociology was to paint a wholesome picture of the major social changes taking place in society.