How Is Society Possible

Georg Simmel's essay “How Is Society Possible?” is built on the idea that an individual can develop himself or herself fully only by entering into society but nevertheless remains marked with an “in-addition” or “individuality-nucleus” that is never entirely socialized. Georg Simmel, American Journal of Sociology, vol. 16 (1910-11) "Kant could propose and answer the fundamental question of his philosophy, How is nature possible?, only because for him nature was nothing but the representation (Vorstellung) of nature. This does not mean merely that "the world is my representation," that we thus can speak of nature only so far as it is a content of our consciousness, but that what we call nature is a special way in which our intellect assembles, orders, and forms the sense perceptions. These "given" perceptions, of color, taste, tone, temperature, resistance, smell, which in the accidental sequence of subjective experience course through our consciousness, are in and of themselves not yet "nature;" but they become "nature" through the activity of the mind, which combines them into objects and series of objects, into substances and attributes and into causal coherences."

How is society possible? In Die Krisis der europiiischen Wissenschaflen und die transzendentale Phiinomenoiogie, I Edmund Husserl is found with a pathos send ing out pleas for belief ("Glauben") in his transcendental philosophy and tran scendental ego. The traditional idea of theoretical reflection instituted in ancient Greece as the suspension of all taken for granted worldly interests has, through a partial realization of itself, forsaken itself in the one-sided development of the objective mathematical-natural sciences as they themselves have become so taken for granted, with the method and validity of their results held as so self-evident, that they appear as resting self-sufficiently on their own grounds, while pursuing an increasingly abstract mathematization of nature. The sciences are left without a foundation and their meaning within the world consequently unintelligible, while their objective and valid abstract concepts continually tend to supercede the everyday life-world and render it questionable. In the end, these of belief in the everyday life-world or reflective evolving and exchanging attitudes doubt (science) ultimately leads to a disbelief in both, and a search in one direction for idol leaders and in the other for the cult of experience. This collapse of Western belief systems becomes particularly threatening as it turns into nihilism which is the development of beliefs in societal forms which employ 2 natural and social science for the liquidation of humanity and nature. Society starts becoming impossible.

What is a society? Within sociology and political science, theoretical debates are typically concerned with how societies can be studied in the best possible way. Despite the importance of these epistemological questions, it is timely to ask what kinds of entities compose society, what the relationship between them might be and whether humans may be said to live in ‘societies’ at all. How do we conceive of a sociological theory that takes these fundamental – and more ontological – problems seriously? This book suggests some solutions based on the anthropology of science of Bruno Latour and the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari. The central argument is that these thinkers provide perspectives which can both reinvigorate the theoretical debates within sociology and provide better analytical tools for social research. Although sociology does not adhere to the letter of Durkheim’s dictum that society should be studied as an object, or of Weber’s theory that only meaningful relations are of interest, it still owes these two forefathers a great deal. Their intellectual influence has made it notoriously difficult to reconceptualize social thought from within the discipline itself. As a result, sociology has become entrenched in an unwarranted anthropocentrism, an inability to integrate language and technical objects as part of its analytical foundation, and a marked subordination to ‘state thinking’. By introducing concepts like the collective of humans and non-humans, event, plane and assemblage, this book indicates new avenues for empirical research which will make a break away from the established patterns possible. Unfortunately, many previous applications of Deleuze and Guattari’s thinking within the social sciences leave much to be desired. A recurrent phenomenon has been the rather imprecise treatment of their concepts. Furthermore, analyses of their concepts are not much more than meta-commentaries on meta-commentaries. To redress these shortcomings, this book presents a more thorough reception of this body of philosophy within the framework of sociological theory.

In these two essays, two of the most important French thinkers of our time reflect on each other’s work. In so doing, novelist/essayist Maurice Blanchot and philosopher Michel Foucault develop a new perspective on the relationship between subjectivity, fiction, and the will to truth. The two texts present reflections on writing, language, and representation that question the status of the author/subject and explore the notion of a “neutral” voice that arises from the realm of the “outside.” This book is crucial not only to an understanding of these two thinkers, but also to any overview of recent French thought.

A watershed event in the field of sociology, this text introduced “a major breakthrough in the sociology of knowledge and sociological theory generally” (George Simpson, American Sociological Review). In this seminal book, Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann examine how knowledge forms and how it is preserved and altered within a society. Unlike earlier theorists and philosophers, Berger and Luckmann go beyond intellectual history and focus on commonsense, everyday knowledge—the proverbs, morals, values, and beliefs shared among ordinary people. When first published in 1966, this systematic, theoretical treatise introduced the term social construction,effectively creating a new thought and transforming Western philosophy.

mile Durkheim is often referred to as the father of sociology. Along with Karl Marx and Max Weber he was a principal architect of modern social science and whose contribution helped established it as an academic discipline. "The Division of Labor in Society," published in 1893, was his first major contribution to the field and arguably one his most important. In this work Durkheim discusses the construction of social order in modern societies, which he argues arises out of two essential forms of solidarity, mechanical and organic. Durkheim further examines how this social order has changed over time from more primitive societies to advanced industrial ones. Unlike Marx, Durkheim does not argue that class conflict is inherent to the modern Capitalistic society. The division of labor is an essential component to the practice of the modern capitalistic system due to the increased economic efficiency that can arise out of specialization; however Durkheim acknowledges that increased specialization does not serve all interests equally well. This important and foundational work is a must read for all students of sociology and economic philosophy.

The Das Kapital of the 20th century,Society of the Spectacle is an essential text, and the main theoretical work of the Situationists. Few works of political and cultural theory have been as enduringly provocative. From its publication amid the social upheavals of the 1960's, in particular the May 1968 uprisings in France, up to the present day, with global capitalism seemingly staggering around in it’s Zombie end-phase, the volatile theses of this book have decisively transformed debates on the shape of modernity, capitalism, and everyday life in the late 20th century. This ‘Red and Black’ translation from 1977 is Introduced by Notting Hill armchair insurrectionary Tom Vague with a galloping time line and pop-situ verve, and given a more analytical over view by young upstart thinker Sam Cooper.

"Introduction to Sociology 2e adheres to the scope and sequence of a typical, one-semester introductory sociology course. It offers comprehensive coverage of core concepts, foundational scholars, and emerging theories, which are supported by a wealth of engaging learning materials. The textbook presents detailed section reviews with rich questions, discussions that help students apply their knowledge, and features that draw learners into the discipline in meaningful ways. The second edition retains the book's conceptual organization, aligning to most courses, and has been significantly updated to reflect the latest research and provide examples most relevant to today's students. In order to help instructors transition to the revised version, the 2e changes are described within the preface."--Website of text.