SOCIOLOGY 475: CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGICAL THEORYSpring 2011Lectures: Tuesday and Thursday, 1-2:15pmClassroom: Sewell Social Sciences Building 6240Instructor: Anna ParetskayaOffice: Sewell Social Science Building 7105Office Hours: Thursdays, 2:30-3:30pm or by appointmentEmail: [email protected] purpose of this course is to introduce students to the work of four thinkers foundational to thediscipline of sociology: Alexis de Tocqueville, Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber. Eventhough these scholars wrote in response to social changes and conflicts of the nineteenth centuryEurope (and the United States), their general concerns revolved around the issues that still matter tous today: capitalism as a form of social order; the interplay between democracy and bureaucracy;the role of religion in the face of the rise of scientific thought; and the concept of the individual.Tocqueville, Marx, Durkheim, and Weber were among the first thinkers to try to explain the natureof society in a scientific way. Many contemporary debates in sociology built on – or at the veryleast are informed by – the ideas, concepts, methods, and approaches of these four theorists. Notbeing familiar with their work is like not knowing your grandparents. The course will focus on thethemes of freedom, inequality, rationality, individuality, and solidarity.Requirements and expectationsReadingThis course involves intensive reading of primary sources rather than textbooks. On average, youwill be required to read about 80 pages per week. If you are unable or unwilling to do this muchreading, you should drop the course right now. Since there will be no other regular assignments(except for survival cards, on which below), my expectation is that you devote maximum of yourstudy time to reading and comprehending the texts – and do so ahead of each class. Some of thetexts (or parts of them) will be very difficult to grasp on only one read, so you are encouraged toread them several times. To help you understand the texts, I will try to circulate readingguide/questions beforehand. Since we will be consulting with texts in class, please bring therelevant readings to class with you.Attendance and participationAttendance is mandatory with three absences allowed over the course of the semester; any moreabsences will result in a lower participation grade. Persistent tardiness will not be tolerated! I willnote attendance, either with the roll call or by checking survival cards (on which below), every day.The class format will be a combination of lecture and discussion with proportion of each varyingfrom day to day depending on the material covered in class. But I cannot emphasize enough that themore that you ask questions, make comments, and critically assess the readings and ideas, the moreyou will learn. Once again, the readings in this class will be quite difficult and the issues they covereven more difficult, therefore if you don’t understand what’s going on in the text (or lecture for that2matter), in all probability you are not the only one. Thus, don’t hesitate to raise your hand anddemand clarification!Written assignments/examsSurvival cards: At the start of each class, you will be asked to submit a 3”x5” index card with anoutline, definitions, key ideas, or other material from the day’s assigned reading. After class, I willcheck the cards and stamp them. I will return the cards to you during the class preceding the exam.In preparation for the exams, you may add any material you would like to the cards, but you cannotcreate new/additional cards. You will have to return the entire set of cards to me for one moreinspection no later than two hours before the test; I will return them to you at the start of the exam.These survival cards serve two purposes: First, in addition to class discussions, they help memonitor whether the students do a good job reading, taking notes, and comprehending assignedtexts prior to the class (if you are the person who doesn’t like to talk in class, this is definitely a wayfor you to demonstrate to me that you keep up with the readings!). Secondly, the cards areacceptable “cheat-shits” that you can use during the exams.Exams: The two closed-book exams will take place during class time (there will be no exam duringthe exam week in May). The first one will cover Tocqueville and Marx and the second – Durkheimand Weber. Each exam will consist of concept IDs, short answer, and essay questions. You areallowed and encouraged to use your survival cards both preparing for and writing the exams.Final essay: The last graded part of the class is a 6-8 double-spaced page essay. You will be askedto compare at least two theorists we cover in class on a specific issue or set of issues. I willformulate several topics/questions for the essay from which you will be able to choose one. If youprefer, you can come up with a question of your own, but it must involve a comparison of twoauthors and has to be approved by me. More information about writing the essays will be distributedin April with the papers due on May 11 by 12 noon.Final grade will be calculated according to the following formula:Attendance, participation, survival cards – 10%First exam – 30%Second exam – 30%Final essay – 30%Office hours and emailI will hold office hours once a week and will also be happy to see you by appointment at other timesif you cannot make the office hours. Given the difficulty of the material covered in class you areencouraged to take advantage of consultations with the instructor. You are also welcome to bring upany issues relevant to the class to my attention.You are also welcome to use email to communicate with me. I will try to respond to messagespromptly, but you should always allow 24-48 hours for my replies. Therefore, do not wait till thelast minute with a question or an important concern!3Required textsThe books listed below have been ordered to the University Book Store (711 State Street) andplaced on reserve at the College Library (if there is a problem with any of the reserve readingsplease email me immediately). You can find cheap(er) copies on www.fetchbook.com or in usedbookstores. Please be advised though that page selections were made from the specific editionslisted below and if you are using a different edition consult with me to make sure you are readingthe correct pages.In addition to the books, there is a small course reader available for purchase at Bob’s Copy