...Theories o religion: | Religious organisationsTypologies | Religious organisationsWhy people join. | Religious organisationsdevelopment | NAMs/NRMs | Religion in global context:Secularisation | Religion in a global contextFundamentalism- | Religion and social Change | Religion as source of conflict or consensus | Religiosity: Class | Religiosity: Age | Religiosity: Gender | Religiosity: Ethnicity | Belief Systems: Religion | Belief Systems: Science: | Belief Systems: ideology | Jun12 | Religion is still the most significant ideological influence in the world today. ’To what extent do sociological arguments and evidence support this view? (33 marks) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Critically examine sociological views of sects in society today. (33 marks) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the view that women are no longer oppressed by religion. (18 marks) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Jan 12 | The growth of New Age and similar movements is evidence of a spiritual revolution in society today.’ To what extent do sociological arguments and evidence support this view? (33 marks) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Assess the usefulness of functionalist theories in understanding religion today.(33 marks) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the view that most people today choose...
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...which religion could be said to ‘exert social control over the members of society’ (June2006) b) Identify and briefly explain some of the ways in which functionalists see religion meeting the needs of society and / or individuals. (June 2007) New syllabus: 12 mark questions a)Using material from item a and elsewhere, briefly examine the extent to which religion can still be said to be functional for individuals and society (June 2002) b) Briefly examine the evidence and or arguments in favour of the view that religion can act as a force for change in society (June 2006) c) Briefly examine post-modernist views on the nature and role of religion (June 2007) NEW SYLLABUS: 40 mark essay questions • Assess the role and functions of religious institutions and movements in contemporary society. (40) Sample A2 paper (Issued May 2000) • Evaluate the view that religion acts as a conservative force in modern society (40) Jun 2001 “The main function of religion is to provide people with a code of behaviour which regulates personal and social life.” Assess the extent to which sociological arguments and evidence support this view of religion in modern society (40) January 2002 Assess and evaluate the relationship between religion and social change. (40) Jan 2003 Assess the view that in most societies, religion functions more to cause conflict than to bring about harmony and consensus. (40) June 2003 Assess the view...
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...“Religion today is more about believing than belonging.” Assess this view. Beliefs – religiosity, do you have to attend a place of worship to believe? Grace Davie – you can believe without attending a place of worship Religious organisations – some religious organisations are happy for people to follow without belonging - NRMs membership is increasing scientology, televangelism, NAM’s- crystal therapy, tarot card readings etc Believing: (people are believing, their practices have changed, not necessarily secular) • Decreasing church attendance – however people have private practice (David Voas) Grace Davie • Religious education • Laws are based on 10 commandments • NRM’s – people believe but don’t necessarily go for formal worship. Wallis • Rise in world faiths – their attendance stats aren’t considered • Postmodernist – religion is changing – televangelism, spiritual shopping, jesus in Disneyland, supply led religion, civil religion eg USA • Methodological evaluation of church stats – are they valid indicator of secularisation? Belonging: (secularisation is happening) • Wilson – secularisation – religious beliefs, practices and institutions are declining • Brierly • Bruce • Attendance, membership, age, women, social class • Rationalisation • Disengagement • Technological worldview – Weber • Structural differentiation – parsons • Social and cultural diversity • Religious diversity ...
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...Assess the view that religion was once mainly a conservative influence but today is more a force for social change (30 marks) In the past religions role as a conservative force was portrayed by the monarchy, ruling the divine rights in medieval Europe, and the Egyptian pharaohs were considered as almost God-like figures and so no one questioned their authority. Feminists and Marxists both agree that religion is a conditioning device that oppresses people, diluting the demand for social change to protect the interests of the men and the ruling class. This is partially supported by the Functionalist approach, Durkheim expressed the belief that religion provides social cement, reinforcing traditional beliefs chosen by religious moral code; such as the 10 commandments for Christianity, for the good of society. However there are numerous examples of ways where religion has acted as a force of change, such as the war in Palestine, the wars in former Yugoslavia and in a positive way, the actions of religious leaders, such as Ghandi and Martin Luther King. In today’s society religion has acted as both a conservative force and a force of social change, as shown by ‘Islamic Fundamentalists’ in Iran and Afghanistan, and Christian fundamentalism reintroducing the teachings of creationism in the US. Religion is also seen to be a conservative force because it functions to preserve things as they are, it stabilises society and maintains status quo. Most religions have conservative moral...
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...Assess the view that science has replaced religion as the main ideological influence in society today. 33. On the one hand it is argues that science has replaced religion as the main ideological function because of the increase in technology, science, and secularisation. However, on the other hand it is argued that religion is still influential and evident in society because of the functions is still performs, thus science has not replaced religion. in comparison to these two views, Marxists and Feminists argue that nor science nor religion are the main ideological influences, rather capitalism and patriarchy are the main ideological influences in society. Firstly, science has replaced religion as the main ideological influence in society because of the enormous impact it has had on society over the last few centuries. This has led to a widespread faith in science. The key feature of science is that it has cognitive power; it can explain, predict and control the world. The fact that religion is declining shows that science has replaced religion. for example, in 2005 only 6.3% of the population attended church on Sundays, which is half of the figures in the 1960s. There also less church clergy now, e.g. in 19000 here were 45000 clergy whereas in 2000 it was 34000. Thus this shows that religion has declined, and this can be attributed to the fact that science is taking over. On the other hand, Davies argues that religion is still the main ideological influence in society...
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...Eugenia Akumiah 12 G….Sociology, The functions of the family Assess the contribution of functionalism to our understanding of families and households. (24) Functionalists take a consensus view of the role of family. They see it as a universal institution that performs essential functions for society as a whole and all members of the family. According to Murdock, it provides important sub-system that provides stable satisfaction for the sex drive and therefore avoids social disruption. As well as this, Murdock says the family reproduces the next generation and thus ensuring current society to continue. Parsons sees a functional fit with the nuclear family fitting modern society’s needs for a geographically and socially mobile labour force. However critics argue that he is wrong about the relationship between industrialisation and family structure. Moreover Marxists, Liberal, radical and Marxist feminist all view the functions of the family in different ways, this essay will assess the different perspectives in which all these groups view the functions of the family. Functionalists believe that society is based on a value consensus- as set of shared norms and values; into which society socialises its members. This enables them to cooperate harmoniously to meet society’s needs and achieve shared goals. They regard society as system made up of different parts or sub-systems that depend on each other, such as the family, the education...
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...SCLY 3: Beliefs in Society Revision Guide 2009-10 Name: Remember: You have to revise everything, because essay questions will focus on more than one area of the specification. The specification: The relationship between religious beliefs and social change and stability * Functionalism: conservative force, inhibition of change, collective conscience, Durkheim and totemism, anomie; civil religions * Marxism: religion as ideology, legitimating social inequality, disguising exploitation etc * Weber: religion as a force for social change: theodicies, the Protestant ethic * Neo-Marxism: religion used by those opposing the ruling class, liberation theology * Feminism: religious beliefs supporting patriarchy * Fundamentalist beliefs: rejecting change by reverting to supposed traditional values and practices. Religious organisations, including cults, sects, denominations, churches and New Age movements, and their relationship to religious and spiritual belief and practice * Typologies of religious organisations: churches, denominations, sects and cults, with examples of each New Religious Movements and typologies of NRMs eg world rejecting/accommodating/affirming; millenarian beliefs, with examples of each * New Age movements and spirituality, with examples * The relationship of these organisations to religious and spiritual belief and practice. The relationship between different social groups and religious/spiritual organisations and movements, beliefs...
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...2B and elsewhere, assess the Marxist view that the main role of the family is to serve the interests of capitalism Marxists see all society’s institutions, such as the education system, the media, religion and the state, alone with the family as helping to maintain class inequality and capitalism. Capitalism, also known as Marxism, is a perspective based on the ideas of Karl Marx. It sees society as divided into two opposed classes, capitalist class, who own means of production and the working class, whose labour the capitalists exploit for profit. In a capitalist society, goods and businesses are owned privately for the purpose of profit. For Marxists, the functions of the family are performed purely for the benefit of the capitalist system. This view contrasts sharply with the functionalist view that the family benefits both society as a whole and all the individual members of the family. But however for Marxists, the functions of the family do not meet the needs of society as a whole but meet the needs of capitalism. Marxists have identified several functions that they see in the family fulfilling for capitalism, one of the functions is inheritance of property. Marxists argue that the key factor determining the shape of all social institutions, including the family, is the mode of production. In modern society, it is capitalist class that owns and controls these means of production. As the mode of production evolves, so does the family. Engels view which was promiscuous...
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...Assess the usefulness of functionalist theories in understanding religion theory Functionalist believe that religion is good for society as they believe it creates value consensus in which is a set of shared norm and values that society cannot live without. Functionalists believe that religion plays an important part in creating and maintain social solidarity and order as well as value consensus. They take on the consensus view. The first functionalist to put forward his view on religion was Durkheim who believed that religion was the origin of human thought, reason and science. Durkheim put forward a view of religion that wasn’t about gods or spirits but about the distinction between the sacred and the profane. The sacred is things that are set apart that inspire feelings of awe, fear and wonder. Durkheim said that religion practices rituals in relation to the sacred and these rituals are collective. He argued that because society is the only thing powerful to evoke such feelings, then people were actually worshipping society. Although Durkheim acknowledged different religion worshipped different sacred symbols, all religions perform a function in society in which brings each other into one moral community. Durkheim also did a case study in Australia of the Arunta clan to further his understanding. He talked about the clan having a sacred totem in which they would all come together and worship. Durkheim argued that this reinforced the group’s solidarity and sense of belonging...
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...SCLY 3: Beliefs in Society Revision Guide 2009-10 Name: Remember: You have to revise everything, because essay questions will focus on more than one area of the specification. The specification: The relationship between religious beliefs and social change and stability * Functionalism: conservative force, inhibition of change, collective conscience, Durkheim and totemism, anomie; civil religions * Marxism: religion as ideology, legitimating social inequality, disguising exploitation etc * Weber: religion as a force for social change: theodicies, the Protestant ethic * Neo-Marxism: religion used by those opposing the ruling class, liberation theology * Feminism: religious beliefs supporting patriarchy * Fundamentalist beliefs: rejecting change by reverting to supposed traditional values and practices. Religious organisations, including cults, sects, denominations, churches and New Age movements, and their relationship to religious and spiritual belief and practice * Typologies of religious organisations: churches, denominations, sects and cults, with examples of each New Religious Movements and typologies of NRMs eg world rejecting/accommodating/affirming; millenarian beliefs, with examples of each * New Age movements and spirituality, with examples * The relationship of these organisations to religious and spiritual belief and practice. The relationship between different social groups and religious/spiritual ...
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...Without her, man could not be. If non violence is the law of our being, the future is with women. Who can make a more effective appeal to the heart than women?’’ Mahatma Gandhi- Mind of Mahatma Gandhi, 1960 Feminist legal theory Women have been the core of discussions on the gender topic and still are, the question is if they will always be, when the ‘gender’ topic is discussed. This has happened and is happening due to the apprehension of the much imperative role that women are playing in society. The need to have women on a level playing ground as their male counterparts in the shaping of society has not been an easier task for the feminist theorists and still isn’t. Though, the little achievement seen today can’t just be swept under the carpet and be ignored to be. Feminist theorists have over the years championed for women’s rights through such paradigms as-sex/gender equality, public/private sphere of the women, and equality/difference between men and women. Still today with a slight vary from the patriarchal world, they can be said to be only ‘consciousness-raising’. The real triumph, according to feminists is yet to be achieved. The statements made by Mahatma Gandhi are yet to be realised fully while others have been realised in society. Violence against women in marital marriage has been dealt with, this has happened through the realisation that ‘marital rape’ actually exists, whoever who perpetuates it is criminally responsible for his...
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...population is as follows. Firstly, they may follow religions than are not declining in popularity like Sikhism and Islam whereas Christianity in certain countries is on the decline. Secondly, if they are immigrating to a new country, they may use religion as a cultural defence and so will become more religious. Finally their culture that they come from may use religion as an integral part of socialisation and so they will carry on practising it when the reach new places. Q2. Religious organisations have been around since the first civilizations, they have been integral to do the development of the human race and modern day society. In the current day, many researchers and sociologists believe that people have stopped becoming lifelong members of these organisations, in this essay I am going to assess this view and find out if it’s true. There is arguments on both sides regarding the extent to which secularisation (decline of religion) is present in the world today, some believe it is associated with the modern day societies. Modernists feel the same way seeing our societies as focusing more on developments into science and rational research. Because of this, many sociologists see religion as being “incompatible” with our societies. The sociologists Weber (1905), sees humanity as becoming disenchanted (preferring scientific explanations over religion). As we are seeing through the previously held mystique of the world, we do not need religion to give us answers. In 2002, Bruce expanded...
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...Assess the view that women are no longer oppressed by religion (18 marks) The view that women are no longer oppressed by religion is prevalent in society today, however there is a lot of evidence to suggest that this is not the case and that women are still very much being oppressed by some aspects of religion. Feminists would argue that religion is a patriarchal institute, and in religion, there has never been equality for women. Firstly, historically, wherever nature is conceptualised, the role of women has been seen in terms of their ‘essential femininity’, that is, as being naturally different creatures to males. Thus, within the philosophies of New Age cults, women tend to be afforded to a much higher status than men. This is one of the reasons that may explain the development and involvement of women in New age Movements (NAMS). Many NAMs emphasise nature, such as using homeopathic remedies, aromatherapy and massage. Bruce argues that the private sphere of cult activity appeals to women because it’s like the private sphere of the home. Glock and Stark would take it further to support this view and argue that women are more likely to participate in these kind of sects because they’re more likely to experience poverty and social deprivation, having a lack of power, prestige and social status (relative deprivation) Women are also more likely to suffer from mental/emotional problems (search for healing), and ethically are more conservative than men, so therefore get involved...
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...between 'expressive' and 'instrumental' roles. (4 marks) Expressive - 'homemaker', usually the female's role as it is more caring and nurturing and stating that they should stay at home and be a housewife and not go to work. Instrumental – 'breadwinner', usually the male's role as it is more physical and states that men should go to work and earn money for their family in order to provide for them. c) Identify three of the types of family diversity described by the Rapoports. (6 marks)Organisational – difference in how roles within the family are organised and shared between husbands' and wives'. (e.g. joint or segregated conjugal roles)Cultural - differences in family structures between different cultures, religions and ethnic groups. (e.g. female headed households in African-Caribbean). Generational – different generations have different attitudes and experiences that reflect the historical periods in which they have lived. (e.g. morality of cohabitation or divorce) Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess sociological explanations of the nature and extent of family diversity today. Family diversity refers to any family type that is not nuclear, such as single parent families and gay couples. Family diversity is becoming more common and accepted in society due to changing family patterns. There are mixed views amongst different sociologists on whether family diversity is beneficial or harmful to society and Item A makes it clear that different...
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...Assess the view that the growth of family diversity has led to the decline of the traditional nuclear family. The traditional nuclear family consists of a spouse and a husband with children. Firstly, a reason for the decline in the nuclear family is because of divorce. As divorce has increased there has been a rise in cohabitations. Cohabitations involve an unmarried couple in a sexual relationships living together. Whilst the number of divorces increase the number of cohabitations has also, making it fastest growing family type in the UK. There are over two million cohabitaing couples in britian, and in addition about a quarter of all unmarried adults under 60 are now cohabiting – double the amount in 1986. There are many reasons for the increase of cohabitations. Firstly, it can be linked to the decline in stigma attached to sex outside of marriage. This is also relevant to the decline in stigma to divorce, so now people are less bothered about divorce, therefore the outcome after a divorce will be a reconstituted family or a singleton life style. Secondly the increased career opportunities for women now mean that they no longer need a husband to sustain a family or themselves. Also now women do not feel the need to pursue a family, but rather some prefer to pursue a career, which can lead to them never being married, or being married at a later age, which can reduce the chances of having children, reducing the traditional nuclear family which consisted of children and married...
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