AN INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
By
James W. Russell
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Societies and Social Life: An Introduction to Sociology. Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY: Sloan Publishing, 2005. Formerly titled Introduction to Macrosociology, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, second edition 1996, original edition, 1992. Available from Sloan Publishing and Amazon.com.
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Employing an historical and comparative approach, the text is founded on the work of the classic nineteenth- and early twentieth-century founders of sociology, who began their quest for objective social knowledge by addressing the large questions--where did their societies come from, what were their characters, and where were they going. In their search for answers, they explored the origins of Western capitalism, analyzed its major economic, political and social institutions, and tried to predict future developments.
The author maintains those classic concerns by providing conceptual tools that help students to make sense of the changes curringly sweeping American, European, and Third World societies.
"Russell introduces sociology as it was meant to be: relevant to the present, historical in its approach, empirically grounded, holistic, and critical."
-Jerry Lembcke, Associate Professor of Sociology, College of the Holy Cross and author of The
Spitting Image: Myth, Memory and the Legacy of Vietnam and CNN's Tailwind Tale: Inside
Vietnam's Last Great Myth
"I use James Russell's Societies and Social Life in my introductory sociology course because it provides a historical structural framework. Too often introductory sociology books are overly reliant on micro-interactionist perspectives. In contrast, this book provides a macro-perspective focusing on power, politics, and the market. Moreover, Russell's historical approach contrasts contemporary societies with past societies and in doing so shows how alternative ways of organizing society are in fact possible. The alternative to capitalist economies is most easily apparent when discussing the development of socialist societies. Most provocative was the discussion of how the societies in the former Eastern bloc have changed with the introduction of capitalist markets. This introductory book discusses the key theorists (Marx, Durkheim and Weber), core specializations (Race, Class and Gender, Family, Organizations), and various research methods. At the end of each chapter, Russell provides a set of key words and concepts that serve as an effective study guide for the students. Overall, this book is clearly written, well organized and it provides a challenging, complex overview of sociology as well as a global and historical perspective of societies."
-Mary Erdmans, Associate Professor of Sociology, Central Connecticut State University and author of
The Grasinski Sisters: The Choices They Hand and the Choices They Made
“Russell introduces students to the field in the way it ought to be done, with the emphasis on the key ideas of the most important classical figures and with a historical and comparative approach. He does not try to do everything or cover absolutely every topic like most of the monster (and monstrous) introductory texts do these days. Rather, he emphasizes the most important and determining features of social structure and change.”
-Donald A. Nielsen, Professor of Sociology, College of Charleston
"I am a big fan of this book. As a historical and cultural sociologist, I find the approach to be a wonderful alternative to conventional texts, and also an important challenge for students. It is historical and theoretical without the need to slide into "conflict" versus "consensus" theory to ease the way. The depth of the coverage of topics like world economic systems is far superior to those I've found in other texts."
-Shannon Latkin Anderson, Ph.D.
Preface viii
About the Author xii
Chapter One
Sociology 1
History
Specialized Concepts
Social and Individual Explanations
Relation to Other Disciplines
Occupations and Uses
Chapter Two
Individuals and Societies 12
Human Beings
Human Beings as Social Beings
Components of Social Life
Settings and Positions
Roles
Norms, Sanctions, and Socialization
Institutions
Subjective Social Life and the Self
Character Structure
Structure, Society, and Culture
Chapter Three
Technological Change 31
Stages of Technological Development
Hunting and Gathering
Pastoral
Horticultural
Agricultural
Industrial
Post-Industrial
Technological Change and Social Problems
Chapter Four
Past Societies 40
Socioeconomic Structures
Communal Societies
Formation of Surplus Products
Village Communities and State Societies
Slave Societies
Ancient Slavery
New World Slavery
Peonage, Indentured Servitude, and Contract Labor
Feudal Societies
Chapter Five
Contemporary Societies and the World Economy 58
Origins and Spread of Capitalist Development, 1500-
The Socialist Challenge, 1917-1989
Theories and Classifications
Three Worlds
Modernization
World-System
Development
Developed Societies
Labor Forces
Transnational Corporations, Post-Fordism, and Flexible Accumulation
Growth of the State
European Social Capitalism versus American Free Market Capitalism
Economies in Transition
Socialist Societies: China, Vietnam, North Korea, Laos, Cuba
Developing Societies
Globalization and New Problems
Chapter Six
Classical Sociological Theory 102
Marxian Theory
The Dialectics of History
Value Theory and Exploitation
Alienation and Labor
Class Conflict and Revolution
Marx and Modern Sociology
Leninist Theory
Emile Durkheim
Positivism and Functionalism
The Division of Labor in Society
Anomie
The Liberal State
Education and the Division of Labor
Suicide
Durkheim and Modern Sociology
Max Weber
Comparative Research
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism
Rationalization
Bureaucracies
Weber, Modern Sociology, and Postmodernism
Chapter Seven
Power, Politics, and the State 138
Power Structures
Power Structure Research
C. Wright Mills and The Power Elite
The State
Class Domination
Military Domination
Legitimacy and Hegemony
State and Nation
Legitimations of Power
Traditional
Legal-Rational
Charismatic
Democracy
Political Stability
Terrorism
Politics and Ideology
Fascism
Conservatism
Liberalism
Socialism
Communism
The Future of Political Ideology
Chapter Eight
Class, Race, and Gender 164
Economic and Social Classes
Developed Societies
Developing Societies
Post-War Socialist Societies
Distributions of Wealth and Income
Race and Ethnicity
Class and Race in North America: United States, Mexico, and Canada
Gender
Chapter Nine
Organizations 191
Organizational Functioning
Types of Organizations
Small Businesses
Cooperatives
Bureaucracies
Membership Associations
Mixed Types
Chapter Ten
The Family 204
Family, Economy, and Society
Family Social Problems
Poverty
Divorce and Family Reorganization
Alcoholism
Domestic Violence
Child Care
Health Care
Family Social Policy and Legislation
Chapter Eleven
Population 220
Malthus and Overpopulation Theories
Contemporary World Population Conditions
Population Control and Development
National Population Policies
Migration and Urbanization
Chapter Twelve
Social Research 235
Defining Research Problems
Review of the Literature
Research Designs
Sources of Existing Data
Interviews and Surveys
Case Studies
Experiments
Rights of Research Subjects
Well-Being
Respect of Privacy
Protection from Deception and Manipulation
Confidentiality
Analysis of Results
Glossary 249
Appendix: Countries of the World 267
Bibliography 275
Index 285
The classic nineteenth- and early twentieth-century founders of sociology began their quest for objective social knowledge by addressing the large questions--where did their societies come from, what were their characters, where were they going? Put more exactly, they sought out the origins of Western capitalism, analyzed its major economic, political, and social institutions, and tried to predict future developments. Sociology's original intellectual mission was thus to objectively analyze societies and social life. Its promise was that by doing so it could help people make collective sense of the social conditions within which they lived.
As we settle into the twenty-first century, understanding the large questions of social life has become even more important. Societies have grown more complex. People have become caught up in ever more intricate and extensive sets of economic, political, and social relationships that transcend national boundaries. New problems of social life have grown up alongside of old, unresolved ones. Despite spectacular technological advances in the past century, social contradictions abound. Astronauts travel in space but fear to walk crime-ridden streets. Stretch limousines crawl uneasily down New York City's crowded streets past growing legions of homeless people.
The following text was written to introduce sociology in a way that maintains the classic focuses of its founders--to provide conceptual tools for addressing the large questions of social life, such as, for example, making intelligent sense of changes sweeping Eastern Europe and parts of the developing countries or the outbreak of wars in different regions of the world. The text therefore incorporates a comparative approach that examines past and present societies and their major economic, political, and social features.
That orientation at the same time incorporates important classical contributions that have come from more social psychologically oriented concerns. Conceptualization of the relationship between individuals and societies--between psychology and sociology--is a necessary foundation for all social knowledge and research.
The logic of presentation of the text is to begin in Chapter One with an introductory description of sociology as a field of study. From there the text progressively builds up the conceptual apparatus of sociology. Chapter Two, Individuals and Societies, describes the basic terminology that sociologists use to conceptualize and analyze social life in all types of societies. Chapters Three through Five contain descriptions, analyses, and discussions of different types of past and contemporary societies. Chapters Six through Eleven are devoted to discussions of major sociological units of analysis: power, the state, class, race, gender, organizations, the family, and population. The text ends with a final chapter on techniques of social research.
I recommend that Chapters One through Five be read first and in order since they contain themes that build. Chapters Six through Twelve can then be read in any order.
In my experience the best way to learn a new discipline is to study its basic concepts. For that reason basic sociological as well as other social science concepts are progressively introduced, discussed, and defined throughout the text. Following the final chapter there is a complete glossary.
This text in many ways is the long-term product of my attempts to teach sociology in a manner that encourages historical, critical, and international thinking about contemporary social concerns. As such, it has developed out of the practice of teaching and learning from students at universities in San Francisco, along the U.S.-Mexico border, in the Pacific Northwest, New England, and Mexico City. Those students were the sounding boards and constructive critics for much of the modes of expression and explanation that follow. From a distance, I therefore express my gratitude.
Intellectual debts--some recent and some long-standing--are also owed to a number of individuals who I have had the good fortune to encounter along the way. These include Hans H. Gerth, Maurice Zeitlin, Harvey Goldberg, James O'Connor, James P. O'Brien, Carolyn Howe, Jerry Lembcke, Martin Hart-Landsberg, Alexander Taylor, Angela Morales, Dennis C. Canterbury, Radim Marada, Csaba Szalo, and Levon A. Chorbajian. The manuscript benefited significantly from the suggestions from reviewers of earlier editions: Robert K. Miller, Jr., of the University of North Carolina, Wilmington; and Saul Feinman of the University of Wyoming, for which I am grateful. Bill Webber of Storm King Publishing made this edition possible. He provided encouragement and skilled help in as close to an ideal working relationship with a publisher as I can imagine.
NOTE TO THE THIRD EDITION
The first two editions, published by Prentice-Hall, were titled Introduction to Macrosociology. What seemed to be an appropriate title at the time of the first edition, 1992, turned out to be confusing. Many thought that it was a specialized rather than introductory book. For that reason the new edition is titled, Societies and Social Life: an Introduction to Sociology.
Those familiar with the first two editions will find a substantial revision of the chapter on contemporary societies and the world economy to take account of the many changes that have occurred since the 1995 second edition. I have added a discussion of European social and American free market capitalism; an analysis of terrorism--to take into account the new climate in the United States since the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center in New York City; and made a number of other, more minor, revisions and additions.
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James W. Russell is University Professor of Sociology at Eastern Connecticut State University. He was the first editor of New Left Notes, the national newspaper of Students for a Democratic Society. He has been a senior Fulbright Lecturer and Researcher in Mexico and the Czech Republic. He is the author of six books, including Double Standard: Social Policy in Europe and the United States (Rowman & Littlefield),Modes of Production in World History (Routledge), and Class and Race Formation in North America (forthcoming, Broadview Press) .
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James W. Russell
Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
Eastern Connecticut State University
Willimantic, CT 06268
U.S.A.
Tel. 860-465-4631
e-mail: RussellJ@easternct.edu