More handpicked essays just for you.
Marx, Durkheim, and Weber are today at the heart of the classical sociological theoretical canon—and
Impact of industrialisation on society
Founder father of sociology
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Marx, Durkheim, and Weber are today at the heart of the classical sociological theoretical canon—and
The fathers of sociology are Marx, Weber, and Durkheim and they are referred to as the sociological canon. Social context was of great importance to the fathers of sociology. The industrial era along with the work of past philosophers had greatest impact on the sociological cannons work. Marx, Durkheim, and Weber became of great significance due to the influence of the dominant members of the sociology community who were white Anglo-Saxon men. In contrast, Wollstonecraft and Du Bois were left out of the sociological canon until recently because they theorized about race and gender issues. The sociological cannons were influenced by industrialization and urbanization directly because they lived during that era. For example, Bratton and Denham
By being a pioneer in the field of sociology Emile Durkheim opened the door for other sociologists to build up...
Each of the four classical theorists Marx, Weber, Durkheim, and Simmel had different theories of the relationship between society and the individual. It is the objective of this paper to critically evaluate the sociological approaches of each theory to come to a better understanding of how each theorist perceived such a relationship and what it means for the nature of social reality.
Harriett Martineau can be considered the first sociologist, she not only influenced Marx’s work on the political economy, but brought positivism to the English speaking world. Martineau was the first to collect data through observation, and speak for and to the people.
Perhaps we could claim Karl Marx to be the most influential sociologist whose work is the platform on which sociology stands. Marx had developed many sociological theories that continue to be redefined and reemployed in a variety of contexts and structures. However, there are many gaps in his work that contemporary theorists sought to link. Marx major contribution to society is the in-depth analysis of economic forces. Marx recognized that almost any society is divided into two classes of people with relation to their mean of productions. He categorized people into the bourgeoisies and proletarians and was able to coin many terms related to the capitalist system. He is the father of conflict theory; he saw that conflict was the essence in creating a change in the society. The capitalists wanted to maximize profit while paying less to their workers, while the workers simply wanted less working hours and a sufficient amount of money for them to be able to live. This conflict is merely the seeds of revolution; class-consciousness must develop prior to such event to take place. He also stated that since the proletarians are the majority of the society, their success in revolting against capitalism is inevitable.
Emile Durkheim, Karl Marx, and Max Weber are all important characters to be studied in the field of Sociology. Each one of these Sociological theorists, help in the separation of Sociology into its own field of study. The works of these three theorists is very complex and can be considered hard to understand but their intentions were not. They have their similarities along with just as many of their differences.
When considering the theories sociology presents us, it is important to keep an open mind and allow ourselves to question and think about our own lives and ideas regarding society. Therefore, making assumptions is a key reason why we should study social theory because it also allows for us to question existing ideas made by sociologists, such as Marx, Durkheim, or Weber. For example, Karl Marx has long been questioned on his work with capitalism and his most famous work, The Manifesto of the Communist Party. Marx is a sociologist that is iconic for the symbolism that is associated with his name; however, many of his work’s points allows for us to keep an open mind and question how his work is related to today’s society or how his predictions are disproven or true. In questioning these existing ideas and theories, we can then question our own thinking and find justifications to support or abandon these
Analysis of the Main Strengths and Weaknesses of Marx’s Sociological Thought “The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles” Marx and Engels (1967, p.67) Born in 1818, Karl Marx, using his philosophical and socialist ideas, attempted to show how conflict and struggle in social development were important in the development of a society. The works of Marx were influenced by three distinct intellectual traditions: German idealist philosophy, French socialism and British political economy. German idealist philosophy is an approach based on the thesis that only the mind and its content really exist. This philosophy maintains that it is through the advance of human reason that human beings progress. French socialism is a political doctrine that emerged during the French Revolution and emphasised social progress led by a new industrial class.
The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were full of evolving social and economic ideas. These views of the social structure of urban society came about through the development of ideas taken from the past revolutions. As the Industrial Revolution progressed through out the world, so did the gap between the class structures. The development of a capitalist society was a very favorable goal for the upper class. By using advanced methods of production introduced by the Industrial Revolution, they were able to earn a substantial surplus by ruling the middle class. Thus, maintaining their present class of life, while the middle class was exploited and degraded. At this time in history, social theorists like Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx challenged the aspect of social structure in their works. Emile Durkheim is known as a functionalist states that everything serves a function in society and his main concern to discover what that function was. On the other hand Karl Marx, a conflict theorist, stresses that society is a complex system characterized by inequality and conflict that generate social change. Both Durkheim and Marx were concerned with the characteristics of groups and structures rather than with individuals.
Inspired by the works of Karl Marx, V.I. Lenin nonetheless drew his ideology from many other great 19th century philosophers. However, Marx’s “Communist Manifesto” was immensely important to the success of Russia under Leninist rule as it started a new era in history. Viewed as taboo in a capitalist society, Karl Marx started a movement that would permanently change the history of the entire world. Also, around this time, the Populist promoted a doctrine of social and economic equality, although weak in its ideology and method, overall. Lenin was also inspired by the anarchists who sought revolution as an ultimate means to the end of old regimes, in the hope of a new, better society. To his core, a revolutionary, V.I. Lenin was driven to evoke the class struggle that would ultimately transform Russia into a Socialist powerhouse. Through following primarily in the footsteps of Karl Marx, Lenin was to a lesser extent inspired by the Populists, the Anarchists, and the Social Democrats.
Throughout his life David Emile Durkheim managed to write about many aspects of life, however his most influential work had to do with sociology. Today he is known as the father of sociology for the innovative and revolutionary work he did. However, his works are not always easily understandable, but once understood its reach is endless. One of the questions that comes from Durkheim’s works is how the individual developed a sense of autonomy, how the individual was able to break out of the mold of centuries in the making. Durkheim explained how they were able to become individually autonomous in his many works.
Sociologists develop theories to explain and analyze society at different levels and from different perspectives. Sociologists study everything from the micro level of analysis of small social patterns to the “big picture” which is the macro level of analysis of large social patterns.
I agree each theorist is relevant within his or her time and place; however there is a reason the three dead white guys still dominate social theory discussions. Marx, Durkheim and Weber constructed predictions, theories and methods that stood the test of time, at least most components did. All of the Giddens readings this week paid diligence to early social theory and theorist. He also does a thorough exploration of the classical theories to highlight shortcomings that arise from the distinction between early Industrial, Capitalist societies and these societies in current times. Many of the methodologies and theories are still relevant, however modern times call for modern applications. Giddens succeeds in creating modern frameworks and applications for classical
The Sociological Contribution of Karl Marx to an Understanding of Contemporary Society. This essay will discuss how the Karl Marx contributed his knowledge to the understanding of contemporary society. Karl Marx is often referred to. as the ‘intellectual father of modern day Marxist economics’.
Workers of the World Unite: You Have Nothing to Lose but Your Chains. Karl Marx, Communist Manifesto. Karl Marx had very strong viewpoints in regards to capitalism, making him a great candidate for this assignment. People constantly debate over whether his ideology holds any grain of truth to them. I believe that although not everything Marx predicted in his writings has come true (yet), he was definitely right on a lot of issues.
The early developments of sociology date back to the late eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds. Sociology’s development was driven by a shift in three main factors; social, economics and politics. All the major philosophers in the early years of sociology thought about the great transformation from “simple, preliterate societies to massive, complex, industrial societies” (Asanet.org, 2014). This paper will discuss and evaluate how the Industrial revolution, French revolution and the dissolution of feudal social order to influenced the creation of sociology as an academic discipline.