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Program Type: 
Thesis
Course Code: 
SOC 501
Semester: 
Autumn
Course Type: 
Core
P: 
3
Lab: 
0
ECTS: 
9
Course Language: 
English
Course Objectives: 

-to critically engage in the seminal works of classical social theorists -Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber - and examine how their concepts, categories, and perspectives on various social issues and dynamics helped construct the social science of modern society. 

-understand the logic of the theorists’ arguments and their underlying assumptions; interpret their theoretical perspectives; and assess the contrasts and compatibilities between their views.  

Course Content: 

- central concepts, themes and theories developed by classical social theorists.

Teaching Methods: 
1: Discussion, 2: Question-Answer
Assessment Methods: 
A: Testing, B: Class Attendance and Participation, C: Written Assignments

Vertical Tabs

Course Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes

Upon the completion of this course a student:

Teaching Methods

Assessment Methods

Learns how classical social scientists conceptualized major sociological issues. 

1,2

A,B,C

Contributes to her/his intellectual development by thinking theoretically about the relationship between society, culture and the individual; the social role of religion; and the social dynamics, such as economic development and social change. 

1,2

A,B,C

Course Flow

COURSE CONTENT

Week

Topics

Study Materials

1

Syllabus Overview and Introduction to the Course

Course Syllabus

       2

 

Hegel

Callinicos

(Social Theory:

A Historical Introduction)

Solomon -- 

 (In the Spirit of Hegel)

3

Karl Marx    

Tucker

(The Marx-Engels Reader)

4

Karl Marx    continued

Tucker

(The Marx-Engels Reader)

5

Karl Marx    continued

Tucker

(The Marx-Engels Reader)

6

Karl Marx    continued

Tucker

(The Marx-Engels Reader)

7

 

Emile Durkheim    

Callinicos –

(Social Theory)

Giddens

(Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings)

8

Emile Durkheim    continued

Giddens

(Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings)

9

Emile Durkheim    continued

Giddens

(Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings)

10

 

Emile Durkheim    continued

Giddens

(Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings)

Emirbayer

(Useful Durkheim)

11

 

Max Weber

Callinicos

(Social Theory)

Weber --  

(The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism)

12

 

Max Weber continued

Gerth and Mills

(From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology)

13

 

 

 

 

 

Max Weber continued

Gerth and Mills

(From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology)

Hennis -   

“The Meaning of 'Wertfreiheit' on the Background and Motives of Max Weber's "Postulate”.”

Mueller –  “Socialism and Capitalism in the Work of Max Weber”

Mazman – “Max Weber and Émile Durkheim: A Comparative Analysis on the Theory of Social Order and the Methodological Approach to                       Understanding Society”

14

 

 

Simmel

Callinicos – Social Theory

Frisby --  (Simmel and Since: Essays on Georg Simmel’s Social Theory)

Levine -   (Georg Simmel on Individuality and Social Forms)

Simmel – “Bridge and Door”

 

Recommended Sources

RECOMMENDED SOURCES

Textbook

-Callinicos, Alex. 1999. Social Theory: A Historical Introdcution. New York: New York University Press.

 

- Gerth, Hans H. and C. Wright Mills, eds. 1958. From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology. New York: Oxford University Press.

 

- Giddens, Anthony, ed. 1972. Emile Durkheim: Selected Writings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

           

- Levine, Donald N., ed. 1971. Georg Simmel on Individuality and Social Forms: Selected Writings. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

 

- Tucker, Robert C., ed. 1978. The Marx-Engels Reader. 2nd ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

 

- Weber, Max. 1958. The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. Translated by T. Parsons. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.

Additional Resources

-Bendix, Reinhard. 1998. Max Weber: An Intellectual Portrait. Vol. 2, Max Weber Classic Monographs, edited by B.S. Turner. London: Routledge.

 

- Emibbayer, Mustafa. 1996. “Useful Durkheim.” Sociological Theory 14(2):109-

30.

 

- Frisby, David. 1992. Simmel and Since: Essays on Georg Simmel’s Social Theory. London: Routledge.

 

- Hennis, Wilhelm, Ulrike Brisson, and Roger Brisson. 1994. “The Meaning of

'Wertfreiheit' on the Background and Motives of Max Weber's "Postulate”.” Sociological Theory, 12(2):113-25

 

- Kalberg, Stephen. 1996. “On the Neglect of Weber's Protestant Ethic as a

Theoretical Treatise: Demarcating theParameters of Postwar American Sociological Theory.” Sociological Theory 14(1):49-70.

 

 - Mazman, İbrahim. 2008. “Max Weber and Emile Durkheim: A Comparative

Analysis on the Theory of Social Order and the Methodological Approach to Understanding Society.” Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 10(1):67-83.

 

- Mueller, Gerth. 1982. “Socialism and Capitalism in the Work of Max Weber.”

British Journal of Sociology 33(2):151-171.

 

-Postone, Moishe. 1997. “Rethinking Marx (in a Post-Marxist World)”. Pp. 45-80

in Reclaiming the Sociological Classics: The State of the Scholarship, edited by C. Camic. Malden, MA: Blackwell.

 

-Simmel, Georg. 1994 [1909]. “Bridge and Door.” Theory, Culture and Society

11(1):5-10.

 

- Solomon, Robert C. 1983. In the Spirit of Hegel. Oxford: Oxford University

  Press.

 

- Wilding, Adrian. 2008. “Max Weber and the Faustian Universality of Man.”

Journal of Classical Sociology 8(1):67-87.

Material Sharing

MATERIAL SHARING

 

Outlines

Final Exam

Assessment

ASSESSMENT

IN-TERM STUDIES

NUMBER

PERCENTAGE

Class participation

1

20

Outlines

5

15

Discussion Leading

5

25

Final Exam/Take-Home

1

40

Total

 

100

CONTRIBUTION OF FINAL EXAMINATION TO OVERALL GRADE

 

40

CONTRIBUTION OF IN-TERM STUDIES TO OVERALL GRADE

 

60

Total

 

100

 

COURSE CATEGORY

Expertise/Field Courses

Course’s Contribution to Program

COURSE'S CONTRIBUTION TO PROGRAM

No

Program Learning Outcomes

Contribution

1

2

3

4

5

1

To raise individuals who are proficient in research methods in social sciences, and competent in carrying out sociological research.  

x

       

2

To raise individuals who develop an interdisciplinary perspective by way of taking courses not only in the field of sociology but also those offered by different faculty and departments.

x

       

3

To raise individuals who have a firm grasp of the main topics and issues of the society in Turkey. 

 

x

     

4

To raise social scientists who are competent in “sociology of organizations and institutions”, one of the major areas of sociology. 

  

x

     

5

To raise social scientists who are competent in “political sociology and social change”, one of the major areas of sociology. 

   

x

   

6

To raise social scientists who are competent in “social inequalities/stratification”, one of the major areas of sociology. 

   

x

   

7

To raise social scientists who are competent in  “culture and society”, one of the major areas of sociology. 

       

x

8

To raise social scientists who have a command of the history of and the theories in social sciences. 

       

x

9

To raise individuals who have the skill of expressing themselves well, verbally and in writing, and who are knowledgeable in the main requirements of academic writing. 

     

x

 

10

To raise individuals who are capable of developing projects in different parts of the world,  working for international organizations.

x

       

ECTS

ECTS ALLOCATED BASED ON STUDENT WORKLOAD BY THE COURSE DESCRIPTION

Activities

Quantity

Duration
(Hour)

Total
Workload
(Hour)

Course Duration (Including the exam week: 15x Total course hours)

15

3

45

Hours for off-the-classroom study (Pre-study, practice)

15

8

120

Outlines

5

1

5

Final examination

1

10

10

Total Work Load

 

 

180

Total Work Load / 25 (h)

   

7.2

ECTS Credit of the Course

 

 

7