...Society & Architectural Design Architecture is defined as the complex or carefully designed structure of an object. In this case architecture can apply to a variety of different examples that are not just buildings, or objects, but as a reflection upon the thoughts and ideas of the time period in history. In this essay I will be discussing the dramatic impact that architecture has had on the major civilizations throughout time by being able to display them in their works, which not only was a clear representation of the time but as well helped mold and solidify the society’s thoughts through expression. By taking examples from ancient to modern times I will examine how the architecture of these eras clearly displays the thoughts and ideas of the culture in which it was built upon and as well the society in which it is placed. As well I will be examining how several major key architects played a dynamic role in these critical showcases that represented their time. I will be taking architectural examples from; the ancient Egyptian time period, the gothic and medieval time period, the renaissance & pre-modern period and the now contemporary period. Each one of these unique periods of time in architectural design were clear representation of the dynamic time period in our history. Here, looking back at these time periods we can see the most incredible works in architectural design that still to this day help us understand the culture at the time. As well I will be...
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...Post-modernism is the sociological perspective that talks about modern social development as the end of the industrial era, while being critical of the Enlightenment era that its bid to achieve “certainty and universal criteria of perfection and a ‘good life’ was a wasted effort” as stated by Zygmunt Bauman. Furthermore, they challenge the positivistic view of objectivity and challenge it with the concept of relativism. Stating that there are no universals, or any objective scientific truths. The post-modernists further shed light on the changes in society from the industrial era or the modern age to the now post modern age. Much of the post-modern perspective is about how it is almost impossible to scientifically analyze the industrial world...
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...particularly in Western capitalist societies. The "iron cage" thus traps individuals in systems based purely on teleological efficiency, rational calculation and control. Weber also described the bureaucratization of social order as "the polar night of icy darkness".[1] The original German term is stahlhartes Gehäuse; this was translated into "iron cage", an expression made familiar to English language speakers by Talcott Parsons in his 1930 translation of Weber's The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism.[2] This translation has recently been questioned by certain sociologists and interpreted instead as the "shell as hard as steel".[2][3] Weber wrote: “ | In Baxter’s view the care for external goods should only lie on the shoulders of the 'saint like a light cloak, which can be thrown aside at any moment.' But fate decreed that the cloak should become an iron cage."[4] | ” | Weber became concerned with social actions and the subjective meaning that humans attach to their actions and interaction within specific social contexts. He also believed in idealism, which is the belief that we only know things because of the meanings that we apply to them. This led to his interest in power and authority in terms of bureaucracy and rationalization. Rationalization and bureaucracy[edit] Weber states, “the course of development involves… the bringing in of calculation into the traditional brotherhood, displacing the old religious relationship.”[5] Modern society was becoming characterized...
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...In her transformation of the Nineteenth century novel Emma by Jane Austen into the modern film Clueless, Amy Heckerling reveals how society has changed over the last two centuries. While Austen illustrates a society based on patriarchal values, where women married for financial security and social status, Heckerling depicts a society where women are more independent and a society which values consumerism. Despite the many changes in society, Heckerling makes us aware that modern society still retains many social values of Austen’s time such as the way tha modern society is still based on a type of class system. Through the characters of the film Clueless, Heckerling makes us aware that despite America being a democratic society a class system still exists. Cher and Emma are both privileged woman born into a wealthy family and both are part of the dominant social group who take their privileges for granted. Cher’s affluent lifestyle is a product of the consumerist American society, where status is determined by wealth, popularity and image whereas Emma lives in a society where status is also determined by wealth, but background and family connections are more important. The use of the mise en scene of Cher’s bedroom and computer which assist her to select a suitable outfit for from her vast collection of clothes which satrises the consumer society of the twentieth century. The mall is described as a place of worship, it is a place where Cher can “find sanctuary…gather my thoughts...
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...themselves could develop and change their society. French philosopher Marquis de Condorcet was involved in the origins of the theory with the concept that technological advancements and economic changes can enable changes in moral and cultural values. Condorcet was the first to make the connection between economic and social development connection and that there can be continuous progress and improvement in human affairs. With that said, new advancements and improvements would need to keep pace with a constantly changing world. Furthermore, he encouraged technological processes to help give people further control over their environments, arguing that technological progress would eventually spur social progress. In addition to social structure and the evolution of societies, the French sociologist Émile Durkheim developed the concept of functionalism, which stresses the interdependence of the institutions of a society and their interaction in maintaining cultural and social unity. His most famous work is The Division of Labour in Society, which described how social order was to be maintained in a society and how primitive societies might make the transition to more economically advanced industrial societies. Durkheim suggested that in a capitalist society, with a complex division of labour, economic regulation would be needed to maintain order. He stressed that the major transition from a primitive social order to a more advanced industrial society could...
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...diversity today. (24 marks) In today's society, there are various alternatives from the typical family type. The top examples of these are lone-parent, cohabitation and reconstituted. But there are also some others such as same sex couples, single parent and multi-cultural families. There has been a decrease in the number of nuclear families in the UK and an increase in various other families such as single parent families. But the raise in single parent households has to do with the increase in divorce across the UK which means that more people are left having to support their children on their own unless they become a reconstituted family. Functionalists are classed as modernists when it comes to their opinions on family diversity in post-modern UK. But they also see modern society as clear-cut, fixed and predictable. They think that the best and strongest family type is the nuclear family. The main functionalist who is focused on is Parsons. He came up with the functional fit, which is where pre-industrial society and the extended family changed into industrial society and the nuclear family. He also believes that the nuclear family meets all of society’s needs the best unlike any of the other diverse family types which society has to offer. Functionalists see all other family types as inadequate, abnormal or deviant. This shows that they don’t think that any other family type other than the nuclear family will benefit society and help to achieve the best it can. Functionalists...
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...Criminalization of Homelessness Criminalization of homelessness is visible in every sphere of modern societies. The Ontario Women’s Justice Network states that “homelessness is tied to structural inequalities and the unequal distribution of resources; it’s a social problem (1). Poverty and homelessness are difficult to escape because a person’s individual choices and chances are restricted. The issue resides with social structures and the elite because they fail to address the factors that cause these individuals social distress. The Ontario Women’s Justice Network insists that “governments should attempt to address and solve the root problems of poverty and homelessness; it’s doing the opposite by criminalizing it instead; those that beg,...
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...REVISTA DE SOCIOLOGÍA, Nº 28 (2013) pp. 31-49 Elites, political elites and social change in modern societies1 Luis Garrido Vergara* Resumen Los estudios académicos acerca de las élites políticas poseen una vibrante historia reciente. El objetivo aquí es proveer un resumen selectivo de esa historia, enfocándose en la importancia de la distinción social y en las teorías de la estructura de poder como el marco teórico para comprender la influencia de las élites políticas en el cambio social. Dado que nuevas perspectivas y preocupaciones han surgido en este campo, la organización de este artículo no es completamente cronológica. Aunque puedan haberse ignorado muchas contribuciones relevantes, la intención aquí es brindar algún sentido de la riqueza e importancia de lo que han logrado los académicos acerca de la relación entre élites y representación, los vínculos entre élites, democracia y cambio social y las teorías de la estructura de poder. En este artículo también se estudia hasta qué grado la introducción de una nueva metodología de investigación por parte de la teoría de la dominación de clase de Domhoff abrió una nueva perspectiva en los estudios sobre las élites. Finalmente, se presentan una estrategia de investigación para las élites y dos conclusiones principales. Palabras clave: Élites políticas - cambio social - estructura de poder - representación. Abstract Scholarly studies of elites and political elites have a vibrant recent history. My aim here is to provide a selective...
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...Sociology Major Essay – Modernity “To be modern is to find ourselves in an environment that promises us adventure, power, joy, growth, transformation of ourselves and the world - and, at the same time, that threatens to destroy everything we have, everything we know, everything we are.” – Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, (Verso, London, 1988 p.1). Drawing on a variety of sociologists writings on modernity explain the idea of modernity as both positive and negative. Modernity is defined in the Collins English Dictionary as the quality or state of being modern. (Hanks 1979) This state of modernity, as described by M. Berman, is one that has positive and negative influences on both the private and public spheres. The modern world in which we live is one that is heavily influenced by the havoc of war and the ongoing process of capitalism. In order to understand the complexities of modernity, one must weigh its pros and cons. Ex-Cambridge Lecturer and sociologist T. Bilton pinpointed the origins of modernity to be during the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century. He discusses the slow industrialisation, new attitudes towards capitalism, and mass urbanisation. These attributes of modernity saw positive growth in wealth and the creation of bigger and more fluid markets. The trends that originated in 1780s England were to soon spread globally, with an increasing concentration of workers in larger workplaces, in tandem with deteriorating work conditions and...
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...art, democracy, medicine, philosophy and literature that has influenced the modern world the most. It is interesting to note that the loss of Greek thought after Roman civilization inducted a period popularly characterized as the Dark Ages. During this time human life was, in words popularized by Thomas Hobbes, “nasty, brutish and short.” Superstition, disease and a short life span were the hallmark of the age. It is crucial to understand that the middle “dark” ages finally ended with the re-discovery of greek texts to usher in the re-birth of civilization, ie: the Renaissance. It was the Catholic theologian St. Thomas Aquinas that set Western civilization on its current track by reintroducing Greek thinkers to European intellectuals. The popularizing of Greek philosophers renewed Western interest in Greek achievements, specifically within the realms of art, democracy, medicine, literature, and philosophy. While some of these subjects remained underdeveloped in Greek times, such as the discipline of medicine and democracy, others were so advanced as to set a standard to this day in the realm of art, philosophy, and literature. Discussed herein is a brief exploration of those Greek achievements that left their greatest influence on Western Civilization. To begin, Greek visual art has had a huge influence on the development of Western Civilization. Greek sculptures and plays have influenced Western society most profoundly since the renaissance. Visual art is focused on here ie: sculpture...
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...Has liberalism betrayed its classical principles? Liberalism is a powerful modern thrust which is not just an ideology, but has become more of a western understanding. Liberalism emerged during the 19th century, following the French revolution i.e. the feudal period. The philosophy had set out principles in relation to the individual such as freedom, reason, justice, toleration and liberal democracy. A century later, there was the establishment of modern liberals. Modern liberalist ideas are similar to those of the classical liberals but, in some cases differ quite vigorously. It has been argued that modern liberals have betrayed the core, classical principles of liberalism. Classical liberals believe that the individual is largely self seeking and self reliant. These liberals believe in an atomistic society, which is the idea that society itself doesn’t exist and that individuals are out to satisfy their own personal needs. C.B. Macpherson described early liberalism as ‘possessive individualism’ where one owes nothing to society. Modern liberals on the other hand have a more optimistic view of human nature. They state that an individual must have social responsibility for one another, especially those who are unable to care for themselves. Modern liberals trust that there should be a unity amongst individuals to create an effective society where one is able to flourish to the fullness of their potential. They are in favour of social support rather than the classical belief...
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...Karl Marx and Max Webber both many had many philosophies of the capitalism and its effects on society. Their ideas helped pave the way and expand on theories of previous sociologists. Both men have a deep insight of socioeconomic class in the origins and development of modern capitalism. This paper will analyze the impact of capitalism on society as perceived by both men and the areas in which they agreed, disagreed, and expanded on the ideas of the other. In many ways, the Weberian theory was “rounding out” Marx’s theories, working within the traditions of Marxian (Ritzer, page 26). Weber viewed Marxists as economic determinists who offered single-cause concepts on societal life (27). Marx’s material orientation and its effect on society was something that Weber did agree with completely. Weber had a strong belief that most ideas are what shapes an economy, while Marx believed that it is the economy (and the materials within it, help to define our ideas (27). Weber was said to have taken Marx’s ideas and, “turned Marx on his head” (27). The inverse relationship between Marx and Weber transcends into many tremendous ideas on capitalism and the effects on society. Both sociologists have unique ideas on the driving measures that led to the development and the rise of capitalism. One of Weber’s most famous works called the, Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, dealt with the origins of capitalism and their “ethos”; ideas that are engraved into religious beliefs. Weber...
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...The development of modern society has been taught throughout history to be associated with numerous historical events and processes such as the age of Enlightenment, Scientific Revolution, and Industrial Revolution. It was primarily the age of Enlightenment that started the advance of human knowledge through reasoning, and the invention of the printing press would spread it by a method of “Mass education”. While these are historically true, the fundamental cause of the development of modern society can be contributed to these main factors: evolution and written language. Evolution may seem to be a very broad idea to grasp at first to explain the development of modern society. However, the manifestation of the modern society was a result of human evolution. Humans benefited a lot from evolution and yet the most beneficial change that human beings acquired from evolution was the change in the vocal cords. The improvement of the vocal cords gave humans the ability to make all sorts of sophisticated sounds unlike that of our predecessors. The ability to use language was also facilitated by the changes to our brain structure. With language, the ability to teach and learn soon followed which would lead to better devices to cook, hunt, and fish. Abundant resources with the improved devices would increase life expectancy and “Grandmother Effect” would become possible. Grandmothers would actually live long enough to see their grandchildren and take care of them. Radical changes in...
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...Examining the functions of the family (a) Consensus is a general agreement for example the functionalists sociologists see society as based on value consensus; that is, harmony and agreement among its members about basic values. (b) Two essential functions that Parsons sees the nuclear family performing is a geographically mobile workforce which is when people often spent their whole lives living in the same village and a socially mobile workforce which is constantly evolving science and technology. (c) Three functions that the family might perform are promoting social mobility to meet the needs of industrial society, promoting geographical mobility as they are better fitted to the need that modern industry has and also providing a reserve of army of female labour that can be taken on when extra workers are needed. Essay : Using material from item A and elsewhere, assess the contribution of functionalism to our understanding of families and households. In this essay, i will be focusing on the functionalist perspective of families and households. Functionalist believe that society is based on a value consensus which are a set of shared norms and values into which society socialises its members. I will look at both the strengths and limitations as well as the different perspectives such as Parsons and Murdock to examine the essay. Murdock argues that the sheer practicality of the nuclear family is a way of meeting four needs whereas Parsons says the family may...
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...Assess sociology view of the family relationships between the industrialisation (24 marks) Talcott Parsons argued the reason the family structure was changing from an extended family to a nuclear family was because the nuclear family was more useful to industrial society, he says this because it is more efficient and fits the needs of society as it’s geographically and socially mobile therefore promotions are easier to get through their own efforts. Parsons saw how the rolls of men and women had developed in the families and he said it was best for society. Parsons argued there are 2 types of basic society that will fit the needs: modern industrial society and traditional pre-industrial society. When Britain changed from a rural society to one where people move to the cities and work in factories and mills, the structure of the families had to change. Parson had said pre-industrial society was made up of extended families but the modern industrial society brought the idea of a nuclear family. Laslett studied family life in the pre-industrial society in 1972. His theory was that in 1564-1821 only 10% of households had kin beyond the nuclear family, therefore structure the family in pre-industrial society was nuclear this criticises parsons theory. Nuclear families are more popular because people married later in their lives after a couple of years of marriage the parents of each partner would die; therefore they wouldn’t live with them. Anderson studied families in Preston...
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