Theoretical Perspectives
The 3 periods society evolved through A.K.A. the 3 stages of human development.
Theological, Metaphysical and Positive
What is the reserved army of labor?
The unemployed individuals in a society.
What did Durkheim think Division of Labor would do for workers?
increase in efficiency and productivity
What was Weber's thoughts on bureaucracy?
At first he liked it but then realized how bad it was later.
What are implicit biases?
Implicit biases are unconscious feelings that one holds towards a certain group of people, which may reflect a favoritism or prejudice held by that person. -- Implicit biases may affect our actions and behaviors without realizing it.
Are societies becoming more or less speculative over time?
Less over time (source of authority went from God > Philosophy > Science)
What are the prerequisites for Capitalism?
1) There will always be more workers than jobs available.
2) DoL
3) Commodification of Everything (including labor)
4) Exploitation of Labor (labor for a subsistence wage)
What were the two types of solidarity that Durkheim created? Describe the 3 key points of each type.
Pre-industrial: Mechanical Solidarity (low DoL, high soc. cohesion, repressive laws)
Post-industrial: Organic Solidarity (high DoL, low soc. cohesion, restitutive laws)
What are the 4 major characteristics of bureaucracy?
1) Rule bound
2) Definite Hierarchy
3) Standardized
4) Efficiency
What is the difference Race and Ethnicity?
Race: based on skin color
Ethnicity: based on culture, language, etc...
Name of the person who tried to prove the existence of God through gravity
Sir Isaac Newton
What is a subsistence wage and how does that compare with how much a worker (proletariat) is working VS their employer (bourgeoise)?
A wage where one is barely getting enough money to get by -- A worker is working long work weeks and gets paid a subsistence level wage while their employer does not work like they do and is reaping the benefits of "buying" their labor power for capital (which is a lot more than a subsistence wage).
Difference between repressive and restitutive laws?
Repressive laws: to stop people from engaging in disapproved behaviors (public shaming)
Restitutive laws: to restore what was previously there before (often times using legal institutions)
From the 3 types of authority we learned in big lecture, which one is bureaucracy based on?
Rational Legal authority
According to the McIntosh reading, what is it called when the dominant groups of a society are benefiting from oppressed groups without even personally doing any oppression?
______ privilege (white, male, straight...)
Based on big lecture, what is Authority?
Legitimized power
How is labor power being commodified?
According to Marx, worker's have been made to feel like they are selling their labor power for a wage BUT that wage is being established by the capitalist, not the worker.
What was the Organismic analogy?
Society is one giant living organism (human body). Some parts are seen as more important than other parts, thus some places are given the most resources (care). (Heart, lungs, brain VS toenail, hair, appendix)
What is the iron cage?
It is a symbolic term used to illustrate the structure that bureaucracy has placed on society, showing how it is difficult to break out of/escape it & makes it hard to address societal issues when the system is enforcing those problems.
Through Mrs. Elliott's experiment in her class, what did her students learn about racial discrimination?
They learned, from their experiences with discrimination by eye color, that it doesn't feel good, to not discriminate against anyone and the color of your skin doesn't have an innate meaning about one self's abilities.
Based on big lecture, what is the definition of Power?
The ability to make someone engage in an act in spite of their resistance.
How is the idea of scarcity so important in capitalism?
scarcity = rarity, and with that comes increased prices for a good/services which means trying to make as big of a profit margin as possible -- Things may run out but never be scarce.
According to Durkheim, what is anomie and when was this felt?
Anomie is the sense of normlessness. This was felt heavily during the transition period between pre-industrial and post-industrial society. -- This is not to say that there were no norms, but the dominant norms were changing which created that "normlessness".
Weber says bureaucracy creates disenchantment. What is disenchantment?
BONUS QUESTION: when is the date and time of the final exam for SOC 101?
Wednesday Dec. 10th, 2025 @ 12:00-12:50pm