Auguste Comte, the French philosopher who coined the term ‘sociology’ in 1838, described the new discipline as ‘The Queen of the Sciences.’ Sociology was supposed to become the overarching science, an interdisciplinary endeavor that integrated scientific knowledge at the highest level. Did sociology fulfill this promise? 19th Century intellectual circles described the new and often bewildering social developments with neologisms such as secularization, urbanization and bureaucratization. Thus, we can understand the founders of sociology better if we consider their contributions within the context of the major changes that took place in the Western societies in which they lived during the 19th and 20th Centuries. 

In the 20th Century, sociology studied processes of rationalization, modernization and even the development of what has been termed post-modern society. The works of the great sociologists not only developed against the backdrop of major social, political and economic transformations, but they also described, interpreted and attempted to explain those developments. Similarly, this course discusses sociological theories that highlight contemporary events such as the current Muslim debate taking place in the Netherlands, which parallels the anti-Semitic ‘Dreyfus Affair’ that split public opinion in the Third Republic in France at the turn of the 20th century.
 

 

Format
The class meets twice a week for two hours, and is structured primarily around teacher presentations, student presentations, and group discussions. Students complete four papers on the basis of intensive, advanced readings.