Notes: The Discipline- 2a | Sociology Mains Optional for UPSC 2024 PDF Download

 Page 1


 
 
 
Sociology and History 
 
History is although not exactly a social science, history shares certain attributes with sociology. 
 
The study of history involves looking at the past to learn what happened, when it happened, and 
why it happened.  
Sociology also looks at historical events within their social contexts to discover why things 
happened and, more important, to assess what their social significance was and is.  
 
Historians provide a narrative of the sequence of events during a certain period and might use 
sociological research methods to learn how social forces have shaped historical events. 
 
Sociologists examine historical events to see how they influenced later social situations. 
 
Historical Concepts have been used by – 
Marx (Historical Materialism) 
Durkheim (empirical evidence, evolution of societies – mechanical, organic solidarity) 
Weber (Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism) 
Indology (GS Ghurye, Louis Dumont) 
 
EH Carr says – the more sociological the history becomes and the more historical the sociology 
becomes, the better it is. 
 
Lucien Febvre and Mark Bloch formed Annales School in 1940s to study long-term social 
history. 
 
Important Quotes to remember: 
“History is past Sociology, Sociology is present history”. 
“Sociology without history is rootless, history without sociology is fruitless.” 
 
Sociological concepts that use Historical roots: 
Ethnicity, Caste, Nationality, Religion, Property Relations, Legacy, etc. 
They are used to mobilise people socially. 
 
Historians focus on individual events—the American Revolution or slavery, for instance— 
Sociologists generally focus on phenomena such as revolutions or the patterns of dominance 
and subordination that exist in slavery.  
They try to understand the common conditions that contribute to revolutions or slavery wherever 
they occur. 
Sociologists and modern social historians would use these data to ask many questions:  
What social and economic forces shaped the institution of slavery in the United States?  
How did the industrial revolution affect slavery?  
How has the experience of slavery affected the black family?  
Page 2


 
 
 
Sociology and History 
 
History is although not exactly a social science, history shares certain attributes with sociology. 
 
The study of history involves looking at the past to learn what happened, when it happened, and 
why it happened.  
Sociology also looks at historical events within their social contexts to discover why things 
happened and, more important, to assess what their social significance was and is.  
 
Historians provide a narrative of the sequence of events during a certain period and might use 
sociological research methods to learn how social forces have shaped historical events. 
 
Sociologists examine historical events to see how they influenced later social situations. 
 
Historical Concepts have been used by – 
Marx (Historical Materialism) 
Durkheim (empirical evidence, evolution of societies – mechanical, organic solidarity) 
Weber (Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism) 
Indology (GS Ghurye, Louis Dumont) 
 
EH Carr says – the more sociological the history becomes and the more historical the sociology 
becomes, the better it is. 
 
Lucien Febvre and Mark Bloch formed Annales School in 1940s to study long-term social 
history. 
 
Important Quotes to remember: 
“History is past Sociology, Sociology is present history”. 
“Sociology without history is rootless, history without sociology is fruitless.” 
 
Sociological concepts that use Historical roots: 
Ethnicity, Caste, Nationality, Religion, Property Relations, Legacy, etc. 
They are used to mobilise people socially. 
 
Historians focus on individual events—the American Revolution or slavery, for instance— 
Sociologists generally focus on phenomena such as revolutions or the patterns of dominance 
and subordination that exist in slavery.  
They try to understand the common conditions that contribute to revolutions or slavery wherever 
they occur. 
Sociologists and modern social historians would use these data to ask many questions:  
What social and economic forces shaped the institution of slavery in the United States?  
How did the industrial revolution affect slavery?  
How has the experience of slavery affected the black family?  
 
 
 
Although history and sociology have been moving toward each other over the past few decades, 
each discipline still retains a somewhat different focus: sociology on the present, history on the 
past. 
 
Quick Comparison: 
 
Sociology History 
Similarities in different events Differences in similar events 
Focusses on pattern of events Focusses on personalities, events (Trevor – 
Roper) 
Analytical Descriptive 
Generalising Particularising 
Nomothetic Idiographic (by Radcliffe Brown) 
  
Page 3


 
 
 
Sociology and History 
 
History is although not exactly a social science, history shares certain attributes with sociology. 
 
The study of history involves looking at the past to learn what happened, when it happened, and 
why it happened.  
Sociology also looks at historical events within their social contexts to discover why things 
happened and, more important, to assess what their social significance was and is.  
 
Historians provide a narrative of the sequence of events during a certain period and might use 
sociological research methods to learn how social forces have shaped historical events. 
 
Sociologists examine historical events to see how they influenced later social situations. 
 
Historical Concepts have been used by – 
Marx (Historical Materialism) 
Durkheim (empirical evidence, evolution of societies – mechanical, organic solidarity) 
Weber (Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism) 
Indology (GS Ghurye, Louis Dumont) 
 
EH Carr says – the more sociological the history becomes and the more historical the sociology 
becomes, the better it is. 
 
Lucien Febvre and Mark Bloch formed Annales School in 1940s to study long-term social 
history. 
 
Important Quotes to remember: 
“History is past Sociology, Sociology is present history”. 
“Sociology without history is rootless, history without sociology is fruitless.” 
 
Sociological concepts that use Historical roots: 
Ethnicity, Caste, Nationality, Religion, Property Relations, Legacy, etc. 
They are used to mobilise people socially. 
 
Historians focus on individual events—the American Revolution or slavery, for instance— 
Sociologists generally focus on phenomena such as revolutions or the patterns of dominance 
and subordination that exist in slavery.  
They try to understand the common conditions that contribute to revolutions or slavery wherever 
they occur. 
Sociologists and modern social historians would use these data to ask many questions:  
What social and economic forces shaped the institution of slavery in the United States?  
How did the industrial revolution affect slavery?  
How has the experience of slavery affected the black family?  
 
 
 
Although history and sociology have been moving toward each other over the past few decades, 
each discipline still retains a somewhat different focus: sociology on the present, history on the 
past. 
 
Quick Comparison: 
 
Sociology History 
Similarities in different events Differences in similar events 
Focusses on pattern of events Focusses on personalities, events (Trevor – 
Roper) 
Analytical Descriptive 
Generalising Particularising 
Nomothetic Idiographic (by Radcliffe Brown) 
  
 
 
 
Socio and Economy 
 
Economists develop techniques for measuring such things as prices, supply and demand, money 
supplies, rates of inflation, and employment.  
This study of the creation, distribution, and consumption of goods and services is known as 
economics.  
The economy, however, is just one part of society, and each individual in society decides whether to 
buy an American car or a Japanese import, whether she or he can handle debt and its obligations, 
etc. 
While economists study price and availability factors, sociologists are interested in the social factors 
that influence a person’s economic decisions.  
Does peer pressure result in buying the large flashy car, or does concern about gas mileage lead to 
the purchase of a fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicle?  
What social and cultural factors contribute to the differences in the portion of income saved by the 
average wage earner in different societies?  
What effect does the unequal allocation of resources have on social interaction?  
 
Examples of Economics and Sociology joining hands: 
 
Advertisements – to study consumer behaviour, values, norms, culture 
 
Adam smith – put forward the idea of possibility of independence of institutions (laissez faire) 
 
Pierre Bourdieu – economists shall look into all costs of economy including crime and suicides. 
 
Neil Smelser – put forward the idea of industrial sociology for better understanding of modern 
society. 
 
A. Lowe – book “economics and sociology” – examines interplay of laws of market and mobility of 
factors of production. 
 
Francois Simiand – principles of economy need to be verified sociologically 
 
Weber – PESC showing affinity of certain religions to have better economic prospects. 
 
Marx – Economic Determinism, mode of production, etc. 
 
Goldthorpe, Veblen - technology available to a society, determines the character of its culture 
 
Alfred Marshall – father of welfare economics 
 
Thomas Piketty – In 21
st
 century capitalism is causing extreme inequality. 
 
 
Contemporary use: 
Michael Mann - In modern times Societies are becoming Economies. 
Feminists – glass ceiling, pink collared jobs, unpaid domestic work 
Economic policy becoming developmental policy.  
Page 4


 
 
 
Sociology and History 
 
History is although not exactly a social science, history shares certain attributes with sociology. 
 
The study of history involves looking at the past to learn what happened, when it happened, and 
why it happened.  
Sociology also looks at historical events within their social contexts to discover why things 
happened and, more important, to assess what their social significance was and is.  
 
Historians provide a narrative of the sequence of events during a certain period and might use 
sociological research methods to learn how social forces have shaped historical events. 
 
Sociologists examine historical events to see how they influenced later social situations. 
 
Historical Concepts have been used by – 
Marx (Historical Materialism) 
Durkheim (empirical evidence, evolution of societies – mechanical, organic solidarity) 
Weber (Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism) 
Indology (GS Ghurye, Louis Dumont) 
 
EH Carr says – the more sociological the history becomes and the more historical the sociology 
becomes, the better it is. 
 
Lucien Febvre and Mark Bloch formed Annales School in 1940s to study long-term social 
history. 
 
Important Quotes to remember: 
“History is past Sociology, Sociology is present history”. 
“Sociology without history is rootless, history without sociology is fruitless.” 
 
Sociological concepts that use Historical roots: 
Ethnicity, Caste, Nationality, Religion, Property Relations, Legacy, etc. 
They are used to mobilise people socially. 
 
Historians focus on individual events—the American Revolution or slavery, for instance— 
Sociologists generally focus on phenomena such as revolutions or the patterns of dominance 
and subordination that exist in slavery.  
They try to understand the common conditions that contribute to revolutions or slavery wherever 
they occur. 
Sociologists and modern social historians would use these data to ask many questions:  
What social and economic forces shaped the institution of slavery in the United States?  
How did the industrial revolution affect slavery?  
How has the experience of slavery affected the black family?  
 
 
 
Although history and sociology have been moving toward each other over the past few decades, 
each discipline still retains a somewhat different focus: sociology on the present, history on the 
past. 
 
Quick Comparison: 
 
Sociology History 
Similarities in different events Differences in similar events 
Focusses on pattern of events Focusses on personalities, events (Trevor – 
Roper) 
Analytical Descriptive 
Generalising Particularising 
Nomothetic Idiographic (by Radcliffe Brown) 
  
 
 
 
Socio and Economy 
 
Economists develop techniques for measuring such things as prices, supply and demand, money 
supplies, rates of inflation, and employment.  
This study of the creation, distribution, and consumption of goods and services is known as 
economics.  
The economy, however, is just one part of society, and each individual in society decides whether to 
buy an American car or a Japanese import, whether she or he can handle debt and its obligations, 
etc. 
While economists study price and availability factors, sociologists are interested in the social factors 
that influence a person’s economic decisions.  
Does peer pressure result in buying the large flashy car, or does concern about gas mileage lead to 
the purchase of a fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicle?  
What social and cultural factors contribute to the differences in the portion of income saved by the 
average wage earner in different societies?  
What effect does the unequal allocation of resources have on social interaction?  
 
Examples of Economics and Sociology joining hands: 
 
Advertisements – to study consumer behaviour, values, norms, culture 
 
Adam smith – put forward the idea of possibility of independence of institutions (laissez faire) 
 
Pierre Bourdieu – economists shall look into all costs of economy including crime and suicides. 
 
Neil Smelser – put forward the idea of industrial sociology for better understanding of modern 
society. 
 
A. Lowe – book “economics and sociology” – examines interplay of laws of market and mobility of 
factors of production. 
 
Francois Simiand – principles of economy need to be verified sociologically 
 
Weber – PESC showing affinity of certain religions to have better economic prospects. 
 
Marx – Economic Determinism, mode of production, etc. 
 
Goldthorpe, Veblen - technology available to a society, determines the character of its culture 
 
Alfred Marshall – father of welfare economics 
 
Thomas Piketty – In 21
st
 century capitalism is causing extreme inequality. 
 
 
Contemporary use: 
Michael Mann - In modern times Societies are becoming Economies. 
Feminists – glass ceiling, pink collared jobs, unpaid domestic work 
Economic policy becoming developmental policy.  
 
 
 
Socio and Political Science 
Birth of Sociology related to political upheaval of French revolution. 
Broadly speaking, Political science is the study of three major areas: political theory, the actual 
operation of government, and, in recent years, political behavior.  
This emphasis on political behavior overlaps with sociology.  
The primary distinction between the two disciplines is that sociology focuses on how the political 
system affects other institutions in society, whereas political science devotes more attention to 
the forces that shape political systems and the theories for understanding these forces.  
 
Concepts used by 
Marx – use of sociology to bring about political change (communism) 
Weber – bureaucracy, concept of power. 
Pareto, Mosca, Robert Michels - Oligarchy 
CW Mills – Elite theories, Democracy 
Parsons – in AGIL Model: Politics gives goals to society. 
Dependency Theories (Wallerstein)– convergence of international politics and global level 
sociology. 
Colemans – Politics of developing areas 
David Easton – A system analysis of political life 
 
Social concepts such as  ethnicity, caste, gender, social class, religion used to mobilise 
people politically and formation of political parties. 
 
Sociology helps in determining political behaviour (including voting pattern, psephology). 
 
Concept of Reservation is also a sociological manifestation in Politics. 
 
Neil Smelser - protests, social movements and right movements. 
 
Concept of Pressure Groups. 
 
Nation – Political organisation of a society. 
 
Secularism – Withdrawal of religion, a social phenomenon, from political life 
 
Citizenship. 
However, both disciplines share an interest in why people vote the way they do, why they join 
political movements, and how the mass media are changing political events.  
Page 5


 
 
 
Sociology and History 
 
History is although not exactly a social science, history shares certain attributes with sociology. 
 
The study of history involves looking at the past to learn what happened, when it happened, and 
why it happened.  
Sociology also looks at historical events within their social contexts to discover why things 
happened and, more important, to assess what their social significance was and is.  
 
Historians provide a narrative of the sequence of events during a certain period and might use 
sociological research methods to learn how social forces have shaped historical events. 
 
Sociologists examine historical events to see how they influenced later social situations. 
 
Historical Concepts have been used by – 
Marx (Historical Materialism) 
Durkheim (empirical evidence, evolution of societies – mechanical, organic solidarity) 
Weber (Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism) 
Indology (GS Ghurye, Louis Dumont) 
 
EH Carr says – the more sociological the history becomes and the more historical the sociology 
becomes, the better it is. 
 
Lucien Febvre and Mark Bloch formed Annales School in 1940s to study long-term social 
history. 
 
Important Quotes to remember: 
“History is past Sociology, Sociology is present history”. 
“Sociology without history is rootless, history without sociology is fruitless.” 
 
Sociological concepts that use Historical roots: 
Ethnicity, Caste, Nationality, Religion, Property Relations, Legacy, etc. 
They are used to mobilise people socially. 
 
Historians focus on individual events—the American Revolution or slavery, for instance— 
Sociologists generally focus on phenomena such as revolutions or the patterns of dominance 
and subordination that exist in slavery.  
They try to understand the common conditions that contribute to revolutions or slavery wherever 
they occur. 
Sociologists and modern social historians would use these data to ask many questions:  
What social and economic forces shaped the institution of slavery in the United States?  
How did the industrial revolution affect slavery?  
How has the experience of slavery affected the black family?  
 
 
 
Although history and sociology have been moving toward each other over the past few decades, 
each discipline still retains a somewhat different focus: sociology on the present, history on the 
past. 
 
Quick Comparison: 
 
Sociology History 
Similarities in different events Differences in similar events 
Focusses on pattern of events Focusses on personalities, events (Trevor – 
Roper) 
Analytical Descriptive 
Generalising Particularising 
Nomothetic Idiographic (by Radcliffe Brown) 
  
 
 
 
Socio and Economy 
 
Economists develop techniques for measuring such things as prices, supply and demand, money 
supplies, rates of inflation, and employment.  
This study of the creation, distribution, and consumption of goods and services is known as 
economics.  
The economy, however, is just one part of society, and each individual in society decides whether to 
buy an American car or a Japanese import, whether she or he can handle debt and its obligations, 
etc. 
While economists study price and availability factors, sociologists are interested in the social factors 
that influence a person’s economic decisions.  
Does peer pressure result in buying the large flashy car, or does concern about gas mileage lead to 
the purchase of a fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicle?  
What social and cultural factors contribute to the differences in the portion of income saved by the 
average wage earner in different societies?  
What effect does the unequal allocation of resources have on social interaction?  
 
Examples of Economics and Sociology joining hands: 
 
Advertisements – to study consumer behaviour, values, norms, culture 
 
Adam smith – put forward the idea of possibility of independence of institutions (laissez faire) 
 
Pierre Bourdieu – economists shall look into all costs of economy including crime and suicides. 
 
Neil Smelser – put forward the idea of industrial sociology for better understanding of modern 
society. 
 
A. Lowe – book “economics and sociology” – examines interplay of laws of market and mobility of 
factors of production. 
 
Francois Simiand – principles of economy need to be verified sociologically 
 
Weber – PESC showing affinity of certain religions to have better economic prospects. 
 
Marx – Economic Determinism, mode of production, etc. 
 
Goldthorpe, Veblen - technology available to a society, determines the character of its culture 
 
Alfred Marshall – father of welfare economics 
 
Thomas Piketty – In 21
st
 century capitalism is causing extreme inequality. 
 
 
Contemporary use: 
Michael Mann - In modern times Societies are becoming Economies. 
Feminists – glass ceiling, pink collared jobs, unpaid domestic work 
Economic policy becoming developmental policy.  
 
 
 
Socio and Political Science 
Birth of Sociology related to political upheaval of French revolution. 
Broadly speaking, Political science is the study of three major areas: political theory, the actual 
operation of government, and, in recent years, political behavior.  
This emphasis on political behavior overlaps with sociology.  
The primary distinction between the two disciplines is that sociology focuses on how the political 
system affects other institutions in society, whereas political science devotes more attention to 
the forces that shape political systems and the theories for understanding these forces.  
 
Concepts used by 
Marx – use of sociology to bring about political change (communism) 
Weber – bureaucracy, concept of power. 
Pareto, Mosca, Robert Michels - Oligarchy 
CW Mills – Elite theories, Democracy 
Parsons – in AGIL Model: Politics gives goals to society. 
Dependency Theories (Wallerstein)– convergence of international politics and global level 
sociology. 
Colemans – Politics of developing areas 
David Easton – A system analysis of political life 
 
Social concepts such as  ethnicity, caste, gender, social class, religion used to mobilise 
people politically and formation of political parties. 
 
Sociology helps in determining political behaviour (including voting pattern, psephology). 
 
Concept of Reservation is also a sociological manifestation in Politics. 
 
Neil Smelser - protests, social movements and right movements. 
 
Concept of Pressure Groups. 
 
Nation – Political organisation of a society. 
 
Secularism – Withdrawal of religion, a social phenomenon, from political life 
 
Citizenship. 
However, both disciplines share an interest in why people vote the way they do, why they join 
political movements, and how the mass media are changing political events.  
 
 
 
Socio and Anthro 
 
The social science most closely related to sociology is cultural anthropology.  
The two share many theories and concepts and often overlap. The main difference is in the 
groups they study and the research methods they use.  
Sociologists tend to study groups and institutions within large, often modern, industrial societies, 
using research methods that enable them rather quickly to gather specific information about 
large numbers of people.  
In contrast, cultural anthropologists often immerse themselves in another society for a long 
period of time, trying to learn as much as possible about that society and the relationships 
among its people.  
Thus, anthropologists tend to focus on the culture of small, preindustrial societies because they 
are less complex and more manageable using this method of study. 
 
Anthro studies :  
- Human evolution 
- Physical, cultural, social anthro (evolution, genetics, fossils) 
- Archaeology 
- Concerned with pre-literate societies 
 
Primarily uses structural-functionalist ways 
 
Both influenced by Darwins evolution theory. 
 
Spencer – Social Darwinism 
Sumner – studied folkways (society + tradition) 
Malinowsky – religion theory using anthro methods 
Durkheim – ethnography of Arunta Tribes, DOL theory 
 
MNS, Andre Beteille, SC Dubey, etc – field study (borrowed from anthro) to study Indian 
villages. 
 
Social Anthropology: 
Studies small society. 
Origin in colonialism.  
Takes western societies as benchmark (ethnocentric viewpoint) 
Malinowsky - another name of social anthro is comparative sociology 
 
Ideas borrowed : 
Survey method 
Quantitative data 
Field work 
Ethnographic research