What Makes Sociology Different?

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Before commencing a discussion on analyzing the article “What makes sociology a different discipline” from the other sciences we should have the know-how about sociology. In the words of modern thinkers of sociology namely Karl Marx, Max Weber and Emile Durkheim “Social fact should be the subject matter for the study of social life and can provide explanations for human thinking and behavior (p19)”. What we infer from the above definition is that man is born as a social animal. Man cannot live alone. He prefers to live in groups and his behavior that is actions and deeds are well governed and regulated by certain rules and laws of conduct that comprises of moral ethics and civic standards. His standard of living is said to be within the norms and standards of the society, if he strictly adheres to the laws and regulations prescribed by the government and the society where he dwells in. On the contrary, if he does not follow the said norms the society penalizes him for his misconduct. From his birth as a child till his death as a responsible citizen the society not only honors him with so many privileges but also enables him in so many ways by proper guidance through each and every stage of his life. The system of the society is a predetermined one and is well governed by its laws which have been prevalent through the inheritance from its ancestors and forefathers. Thus, sociology as a behavioral science studies the behavior of an individual as a group or an entity. For example, customs and traditions of a particular society have been in the picture for many ages and still the followers follow it based on the lifestyle of the predecessors. The above explanation is very much clear and prominent in the discussion of Durkheim. A... ... middle of paper ... ...e from other disciplines. Thus, sociology cannot disconnect itself from the collective general phenomena. To conclude , ‘a social fact is any way of acting whether fixed or not capable of exerting over the individual on external constraints or which is general over the whole of a given society whilst having an existence of its own independent of its individual manifestations (p26)” which makes us derive the special features of sociology. It means that the nature of acting is not a stable one but has control over the person who adopts it, presents generalized conclusions in the form of laws that is imposed on the society that functions in an independent way to build and develop a good society. Work Cited Durkheim, Emile. [1895] 1938. The Rules of Sociological Method. Translated by Sarah A. Solovay and John H. Mueller. George Catlin ed. Chicago, IL. : Free Press.

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