Philosophy Stack Exchange
Philosophy Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [sociology]

127 questions
7
votes
11 answers

Can religion be considered obsolete?

Can religion be considered obsolete and in practice an obstacle to the rise of science and reason? I think that religion is the outdated mode of existence, governance, and education of social organization. I regard secularization, a very important…
John Am
  • 1,324
  • 1
  • 14
  • 33
4
votes
2 answers

How did Bourdieu interpret the word 'class'?

If I were to ask Pierre Bourdieu: "What is class to you?", what would he answer? I've read some research on Bourdieu's work, but I have yet to encounter a clear answer on his interpretation of class. I have some options in mind which might be valid…
hamburger
  • 51
  • 5
3
votes
2 answers

Why do so many people persist on using classifications with no bases in reality whatsoever?

E.g. the borders of countries: They are formed by arbitrary "rules": Sometimes rivers and coasts, but mostly due wars and other weird, historical stuff that doesn't really exist in a reality outside of the ideological concept of our imagined…
Perik Onti
  • 305
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
3
votes
1 answer

Does collectivism actually exist?

Does collectivism actually exist? Wikipedia defines: Collectivism is a cultural value that is characterized by emphasis on cohesiveness among individuals and prioritization of the group over self. If (at least from western Cartesian viewpoint)…
mavavilj
  • 3,036
  • 21
  • 37
2
votes
2 answers

What characteristics are generally considered traits for perfection?

Assuming it's possible for someone to be absolutely perfect, can we get an idea of what is socially considered "perfect" (in a manner or way that could not be better) through linguistics? For example, the following phrases seem quite…
Yukang Jiang
  • 511
  • 1
  • 4
  • 9
2
votes
0 answers

Do you know any Medieval philosophers, who have writings on the problem of anomie?

I know that the usage of the term declined in the Middle ages, but I was wondering, whether someone discussed this problem, perhaps referring to it as normlessness.
Philosophiser
  • 21
  • 1
2
votes
1 answer

Was Bourdieu's 'Ökonomisches Kapital, kulturelles Kapital, soziales Kapital' written originally in German?

Self explaining question. I did an extensive online research to find the original text, but it doesn't go before In: Reinhard Kreckel (Hg.), »Soziale Ungleichheiten« (Soziale Welt Sonderband 2), Göttingen 1983, S. 183-198 Originalbeitrag, übersetzt…
t.eren
  • 21
  • 2
2
votes
2 answers

What is the philosophy of terrorism?

We are seeing things being done in the world by some organized group of people. And I am trying to understand something. Certainly, as a group, they act on a defined agenda. This must imply a philosophy behind their actions, i.e. they must have a…
noncom
  • 155
  • 5
1
vote
0 answers

Dichotomy in society

I am not a student of sociology but I wish to know if there is any theory of society where we can study the dichotomy in a sociological aspect. Take for example, in a country where there is a crackdown on child marriages on one side not covered by…
Suddhasattwa Ghosh
  • 261
  • 2
  • 6
1
vote
1 answer

Why are organisations more tolerant about members' alleged misconduct than the rest of society?

Churches (sexual abuse), political parties (anti-semitism, sexism), armed forces (human right trespasses), companies (sexual abuse, fraud), universities (sexual abuse), etc. So often we find organisations that, according to "the rest of society"…
luchonacho
  • 910
  • 4
  • 17
1
vote
2 answers

Can class, status and power exist independently?

Class, status and power are usually seen together as the three-component theory of stratification (according to Max Weber) Class - the division of a society based on socioeconomic status Status - the relative rank that an individual holds in a…
Stasiana
  • 43
  • 4
1
vote
2 answers

Why is always spoken of a 'game' in sociologic subjects?

I nearly heard it everytime in sociologic matters, e.g. in a description for the sociologist itself ("A sociologitst is, who's professionally trying to understand the game of individuals in groups") or several types of philosophical-anthropological…
RumelDilDumpel
  • 13
  • 3
0
votes
0 answers

Philosophers who have written on aesthetics of ideas

One example I can give is the book "Fashion, Faith and Fantasy" by Roger Penrose. There he talks about the Fashion, Faith and Fantasy of popular physics theories, for instance ones like string theory, M theory and the likes. Similar to this, but on…
tryst with freedom
  • 2,178
  • 10
  • 23
0
votes
1 answer

Is there any word "Numerical power" in sociology?

I was thinking about how population influences the power dynamics in a polity. The community that has the majority has more say in political discourse. Can we use the term "Numerical power" to describe the power of such a community? Would it be…
Anurag Pradhan
  • 1
0
votes
2 answers

Concept and usage of social abuse

If I say to an individual, who belongs to a higher social caste, that I will not help him but only those who are socially outcast and downtrodden, will it be considered as an abuse to the higher caste?
Suddhasattwa Ghosh
  • 261
  • 2
  • 6
1
2