The study of various groups within a societal structure that determines the reasons why those groups exist within said societal structure. Simply put, sociology tries to make sense out of why people do what they do in the society they live in, but it's not all-inclusive, nor does sociology explain every single detail. It's an educated guess.
Karl Marx believed very firmly in the conflictive theory of sociology, and that is because he was very communistic in his thinking, whereas, my take is more functionalist, because I believe that people are in this society to serve various functions, and those functions they serve are overall better for the society as a whole, and it brings the person contributing a sense of greater satisfaction knowing that they have contributed to a greater good.
by GraphicArtist2KForever January 22, 2004
I am a soc. major and I am focusing on the prison system and more specifically drug offenders. I believe treatment whould be the first option seeing as it is less espensive than the prison system and has shown to be more effective because of less repeat offenders.
by Dustin April 4, 2005
by Na January 23, 2004
im a sociology teacher, man i love being stoned and eyeing up girls
e.g. "That Morgan, what a treat."
"I need a spliff... I mean photocopy some work"
e.g. "That Morgan, what a treat."
"I need a spliff... I mean photocopy some work"
by mr harley March 24, 2007
An academic discipline designed to:
1. uncover the cause of modern society's problems, aka white males (or even whiteness in general).
2. reveal Marxism as the solution to all of the problems that white males have caused by their oppressive habit of being successful
1. uncover the cause of modern society's problems, aka white males (or even whiteness in general).
2. reveal Marxism as the solution to all of the problems that white males have caused by their oppressive habit of being successful
Sociology Professor: "Why are you in college right now, instead of getting pregnant in high school and dropping out?"
Me: "Because I made responsible choices to avoid that situation and worked hard in school"
Sociology Professor: "Actually, no, it's because you benefitted from White Privilege"
Me: "Because I made responsible choices to avoid that situation and worked hard in school"
Sociology Professor: "Actually, no, it's because you benefitted from White Privilege"
by ambyellen January 27, 2009
Marxism 101, an easy and straightforward subject that extols the virtues of accepting mediocrity and abandoning responsibility. When the first subjective piece of reading in the book is the Communist Manifesto, and subsequent readings focus upon inequality and other typical liberal causes, a truly open minded person would realize (the readings ask you to open your mind) that the subject is quite biased in nature.
An example of bias can be found in my professor's explanation of Functionalism. "If you are a Marxist then you will disagree with Functionalism, but right wingers believe it is valid because it emphasizes the smooth continuation of society while ignoring certain social problems." Seeing as America is a right-of-center country (which cannot be argued as Obama only beat McCain by 6 points after the disastrous Bush presidency and his liberal agenda is stalled despite majorities in Congress) that values self determination and personal responsibility, the more accurate term in the context of American politics for Marxist would be left wing radical and the more accurate term for right winger would be conservative leaning moderate.
The upside is that the class is straightforward, easy, and designed to emphasize (undeserved) equality. Thus grade distribution is top heavy.
I take sociology because it is an easy A, it helps me understand Marxist ideology (which I can then refute by looking at the world through a pragmatic lens), and the professor is an attractive blonde.
An example of bias can be found in my professor's explanation of Functionalism. "If you are a Marxist then you will disagree with Functionalism, but right wingers believe it is valid because it emphasizes the smooth continuation of society while ignoring certain social problems." Seeing as America is a right-of-center country (which cannot be argued as Obama only beat McCain by 6 points after the disastrous Bush presidency and his liberal agenda is stalled despite majorities in Congress) that values self determination and personal responsibility, the more accurate term in the context of American politics for Marxist would be left wing radical and the more accurate term for right winger would be conservative leaning moderate.
The upside is that the class is straightforward, easy, and designed to emphasize (undeserved) equality. Thus grade distribution is top heavy.
I take sociology because it is an easy A, it helps me understand Marxist ideology (which I can then refute by looking at the world through a pragmatic lens), and the professor is an attractive blonde.
Sociology is one of the reasons why colleges have a reputation for being left wing. It is basically a class that advocates the reasons for class warfare.
Damn, my sociology class is filled with faux intellectuals, kids with Che Guevara tee shirts, and hot blondes.
Damn, my sociology class is filled with faux intellectuals, kids with Che Guevara tee shirts, and hot blondes.
by PoliSciMajorEconMinor February 12, 2010
Sociology is recognised as an individual subject academically, distinguished from other social sciences of Psychology, economics, social policy etc, but is however more subjective than other social sciences. Collectively, sociology may be defined by its terminology, aims and practice. Sociology is a study of humans, the representation of individuals within a community and attempts to interpret the actions derived from interactivity between people of a social group, community or society (or all three), based upon their position within said group. The interpretation of these actions, and the basis of action within society are cohesive with the values imposed upon the individual within his/her community, which may be based upon culture, religion, education, social position, work, etc and competence within the community, as well as the resolve of others, having a direct influence upon an individuals action.
A social scientist may be concerned with: Social Statics – the study of coexistence of institutions in a system, and their structures and functions; Social Dynamics – the study of change in institutions and systems over time, their development and progress. But it is not his assumed position to consider the problems of the individual human "unit". Sociology is psychology as a Marcoscience?
by Ben Cummins March 15, 2005