Question

3-5 sentence

Summarize the contributions of Émile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Karl Marx to the field of sociology. Be sure to note any theoretical differences they may have had with one another.

Answer 1

• Durkheim's body of work as a researcher and theorist focused on how it is that a society can form and function, which is another way of saying, how it can maintain order and stability.For this reason, he is considered the creator of the functionalist perspective within sociology. Durkheim was most interested in the glue that holds society together, which means he focused on the shared experiences, perspectives, values, beliefs, and behaviors that allow people to feel that they are a part of a group and that working together to maintain the group is in their common interest.
• Today, Durkheim's work is also useful to sociologists who rely on his concept of anomie to study the way violence often crops up -- whether to the self or others -- in the midst of societal change. This concept refers to how societal change, or the perception of it, can cause one to feel disconnected from society given changes in norms, values, and expectations, and how this can cause both psychic and material chaos.
• Karl Marx, whose ideas about social classes and class struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat was the foundation of the conflict perspective, believed that class conflict was the key to human history. Marx believed that the conflict and struggle would end only with a revolution by the working class.(conflict theory)
• Karl Marx focused on struggles between the bourgeoisie (the small group of capitalists who own the means of production) and the proletariat (the masses of workers exploited by the capitalists).
• Max Weber was one of the most influential of all sociologists, raising issues that remain controversial even today. Disagreeing with Karl Marx, Weber defined religion as a central force in social change (i.e., Protestantism encourages greater economic development and was the central factor in the rise of capitalism in some countries).