What is the sociological perspective?
What is the sociological perspective?
A sociological perspective represents the approach, viewpoint, paradigm, or philosophical position, adopted to analyze, study, understand, perceive, or interpret a social reality, phenomena, situation, or concept. Sociology is nothing without the diverse sociological perspectives expanding, broadening, and facilitating our understandings of society, social relationships, social interactions, social actions, social institutions, social structures and so on.
There are various sociological perspectives adopted by classical, contemporary, and post-modern thinkers, theorists, and sociologists. Emile Durkheim, a classical sociologist who formalized sociology, used a functional perspective in perceiving social reality. Durkheim believed that society exists as an external objective reality. And this reality exists due to the functions performed by various structures and elements within society resulting in social order and stability.
Karl Marx, in comparison, used a critical eye in perceiving social reality. Marx tried to expose the disparity, discrimination, exploitation, alienation, and domination informed by a class-based capitalist society. His critical perspective argued that society is a reality based on class struggle laced with one class's domination over the other. He expressed in a capitalistic society that the economic forces determine the superstructures. The owners of production and relations forged through the production process define the dominant norms, culture, and ideologies.
Max Weber broke free form Durkheim and Marx and stated that to generate a comprehensive understanding of society, the meanings, motives, symbolism of social actions could not be avoided. Weber founded the interpretive perspective in sociology. He suggested that natural sciences rules do not apply to social sciences as the subject matter of sociology (i.e. human beings) is dynamic and evolving compared to the natural sciences' static subject matter.
Step by step
Solved in 3 steps
