Читать книгу Sociology - Anthony Giddens - Страница 58

1 What aspects mark out the sociological imagination as different from the perspective of the individual person? What is sociology’s main subject matter?

2 What were the social, economic and political problems that the early sociologists sought to understand and solve?

3 List the main contributions made to the founding of sociology by Auguste Comte, Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. What assumptions about societies are shared by all four and in what ways do their perspectives diverge?

4 Theoretical disputes are difficult to resolve even in the natural sciences, but what makes them peculiarly problematic in sociology?

5 Outline the three central theoretical traditions in Euro-American sociological theory. Is it fair to suggest that sociology needs all three if it is to be successful, or does one tradition have a better grasp of social reality? What issues have risen to prominence since the latter part of the twentieth century that none of the three traditions has adequately incorporated?

6 Using examples of ethnicity or gender, explain how micro and macro levels of social life are connected. What is meant by the meso level of social reality?

7 What are the practical implications and applications of sociological research? List the ways in which sociology can make a valuable contribution to improving social life.

8 Should sociologists become more involved in political debates in order to influence policies or should they just get on with their research and let others decide how their findings should be used? Can you think of any reason why sociologists might withhold their findings for political reasons? Should they?