THE SOCIOLOGY BOOK 内容简介

Can the gap between the rich and the poor be eliminated? What induces people to commit crimes? How has the Internet changed the relationship between people? In the long history, mankind has been exploring how to govern society, which is a major issue. Sociologists have given some plans and continue to shape today's world. This book is easy to understand, concise and powerful interpretation of the profound social academic terminology, clear and fluent diagrams to analyze the profound theory, witty and witty examples ignite our thoughts on society and its system spark. Whether you are an enthusiast of sociology or an expert living in a deep study, you will get rich spiritual food from the book Encyclopedia of Sociology.

THE SOCIOLOGY BOOK 精彩文摘

Science can be used to build a better world

Auguste Conde (1798-1857)

By the end of the 18th century, the growing industrialization had brought great changes to the traditional European society. At the same time, after the French Revolution, France is trying to establish a new social order. Some thinkers, such as Adam Smith, try to explain the rapid changes of society in economic terms; others, such as Jean Jacques Rousseau, start with political philosophy. Adam Ferguson once described the social consequences of modernization, but no one can explain social progress from the perspective of political and economic theory. However, compared with social instability in France, Socialist Aung Lee Saint-Simon tried to analyze the causes of social change and how to establish social order. In his view, there is a model of social progress, and society has to go through a series of different stages. His disciple, Confucius, developed this idea into a complete system to study society in accordance with scientific principles; Confucius initially called it "sociophysics" and later changed it to "sociology".

Understanding and Change

As the son of enlightenment, Confucius'thought is rooted in the concept of the enlightenment era, emphasizing rationality and objectivity. The scientific methods in the Enlightenment influenced Confucius'philosophical path. He analyzed the natural sciences and their methodology in detail, and proposed that all branches of knowledge should adopt scientific principles and base their theories on observation. The core idea of Confucius'positivism philosophy is that any effective knowledge can only come from empirical and scientific inquiry. He has witnessed the power of change in science: scientific discovery brings technological progress, and then industrial revolution, creating the modern world in which he lives.

He believes that the era of social science has come. It should not only explain the mechanism of social order and social change, but also provide us with ways to change society, just as natural science helps us to change our natural environment. He regards the study of human society or sociology as the most challenging and complex subject, so it should be "after science".

Comte's assertion that "the scientific research of society is the peak of human inquiry into knowledge" is influenced by the thought of Aung Li Saint-Simon, which is called the "three-stage rule". He holds that our understanding of phenomena goes through three stages: theological stage, in which God or the gods are the cause of things; metaphysical stage, in which phenomena are explained by abstract essence; and empirical stage, in which knowledge is verified by scientific methods.

Comte's grand theory of social evolution is also an analysis of social progress, which is different from the simple description of different social stages of hunting-gathering, nomadism, agriculture and industry-commerce. According to Comte, the French society before the Enlightenment was rooted in theological stage, and social order was based on religious principles. After the French Revolution in 1789, French society entered a metaphysical stage, which was guided by secular principles and concepts (especially the right to freedom and equality). Confucius believes that after recognizing the shortcomings of post-revolutionary society, it is possible to enter the empirical stage and scientifically determine social order.

Science of Society

On the basis of the existing "hard" science, Comte put forward a new framework of sociology. He set a scientific hierarchy, and logically arranged each science as the cornerstone of its next science. Starting with mathematics, this hierarchy is in turn astronomy, physics, chemistry, and biology. The climax of this "positivism" ascending order is sociology. Therefore, Confucius felt that it was necessary to have a thorough grasp of other sciences and their methods before attempting to use this knowledge to study society.

The most important thing is the observational-based principle of verifiability: supporting theory with factual evidence. However, Comte also pointed out that it is necessary to use hypothesis to guide the direction of scientific argument and determine the scope of observation. He divides sociology into two research fields: "social statics", that is, the power to determine social order and promote social solidarity; and "social dynamics", that is, the power to determine social change. Scientific understanding of these forces will help bring society into the ultimate empirical stage of social evolution.

Although Confucius was not the first thinker to attempt to analyze human society, he was a pioneer in establishing a scientific approach to the study of society. In addition, his positivist philosophy provides not only an explanation of secular industrial society, but also a way to realize social reform. He believed that just as science had solved the problems of the real world, sociology, as the ultimate unifier of science and other sciences, could be used to solve social problems and create a better society.