Sociology Notes

Introduction
Hugo Grotius said about the sociability of man; "Among the things peculiar to individual is his desire
for society - a certain inclination to live with those of his kind."

Keeping Grotius' words as theme of this topic, the objectives, manifestations and the methods of
sociability of individual can be studied.

What is Sociability?
Sociability or sociality can be defined as, 'the natural inclination of human being to live in the society
and for being social'.

Aristotle's View of Man's Sociability

The Greek philosopher Aristotle believed in sociability of man. This belief is explicit in his words that;
"Man is a social animal. One who doesn't live in society is either God or a beast".
Why Sociability is Necessary to Man?
Sociability is inevitable because of the following logics:

- Man is a social animal

- It is individual's natural inclination
- Man depends upon society for spiritual and material needs
- Men are interdependent
- Need for work opportunities for earning a living
- It provides proper existence to individual
- Ensures safety and security
- An individual needs socialization from birth to death
- It's a link of the natural social setup on earth

Methods of Sociability
Methods of sociability is a broader and fluid topic. Every sociologist will look at the methods from
varying prospects. The most common ways that establish and promote sociability include:

- Routinely business communication

- Face to face contact
- Gatherings
- Public meetings
- Interdependence in society
Sociability of Man
Manifestations of Sociability of Man
The first and foremost manifestation of man's sociability can be seen in the fact that, 'no human
being leaves society to live in forests or deserts. We see the cities full of people. Even those who
have no shelters to live in sleep across the roads on footpaths but they never go to live in a place
which lacks society'.

Villages, towns, residential communities in urban areas all are the material manifestations of man's
sociability. Men live in these places and evolve societies. They tend to make rules to govern their
living in these areas and also obey the social norms to keep the sociability intact and healthy.

Professor MacIver's Cases Proving Man's Sociability

Professor MacIver narrated two important cases of 20th century in order to prove man's sociability.
They were;
Amala Kamala Case
Anna Case
In both the cases, the children named above were taken to the distant places away from society.
They were brought up without letting them hear any social communication between human being.
When they reached the age of majority, all they could speak was like a child uttering meaningless
sounds. This proved how sociability is inevitable for a human being.

Sociability of Man in 21st Century

This century is the century of media and technology in their various shapes. Sociability of man has
increased in a sense that social media helps him keep contact even with those whom he never met.
Another point of view is that the sociability of man has been restrained in the modern age. Face to
face contact, public gatherings and sports has been marginalized. People prefer to remain in houses
and use internet facilities to contact others. But at a broader level this rarely affects sociability of
man.

Conclusion
Sociability of man is natural and inevitable. Its promotion however depends upon the surroundings of
man. Manifestations of sociability of man can be more accurately seen in our daily routines. It is
something that one cannot resist.
Culture
Culture is a major discipline within the ambit of sociology. Every society is subject to a peculiar
culture that covers its socio-economic, political and religious aspects. Human beings learn behavior
in society and when that behavior is demonstrated it becomes culture.

What is Culture?
"Culture is an accumulation of thoughts, values and objects." (Graham Wallas)

- Characteristics of Culture
- Types of Culture
- Functions of Culture
- Elements of Culture
- Culture and Socialization
- Important Terms of Culture
Characteristics of Culture
Culture has been generally characterized with several features. A culture is:

Adaptive
Culture has the capacity to adapt to the new social circumstances created by man. Another side of
this characteristic is that human beings are adaptive to the culture. They adopt the changing culture.

Transmissive
It can be transmitted from one society to another society; similarly from one generation to another
generation.

Explicit and implicit

Cultural traits can be explicit in shape of actions and can be implicit behind the actions we perform.

Shareable
A cultural trait is shareable. It can be shared by people of the same or different society.

Learnable
Man is dependent on socialization which actually teaches it culture of living in society. Culture is
learnable when an individual goes to live in a different society from that of his own.

Evolved or evolving
Most of the time a culture is evolving as human beings never stop practicing new things in society.
Sometimes a culture is already evolved in centuries i.e. a rich culture.

Observed and practiced

Cultural practices are established by one generation after it observes the preceding generations
following them.

Dynamic
Culture is dynamic in its approach. It is forceful and adaptable. It is versatile. It is comprehensive
mostly.

Variable
Culture is not same all the time. It feels change in the thoughts and expectations of people which
ultimately come in their actions. This sets new practices bringing a change to the old culture. 'sub-
Culture' is the term used to denote a small variable part of cultural practices in a major culture.
ypes of Culture
Culture has broadly been classified into two types which are discussed below.

A. Material Culture
Material culture is the name of physical, tangible and explicit type of culture. It is the culture which
has material evidence of its existence. Examples in this type may include;
Infrastructure of a culture
Clothing and food in a culture
Literature of a culture
To elucidate this point further we can take example of Cuba. In this island country the 'cars' are a bit
old fashioned. Despite political reasons for this, this thing is taken as a part of Cuban culture. Any
documentary on Cuba doesn't complete without showing the old models cars as part of Cuban
culture. Similarly, we eat burger at multinational fast food chains. Basically this denotes the Western
food culture. Another manifestation of material culture is Gothic style buildings usually built in
European countries.

B. Non-Material Culture
This type reflects non-tangible, immaterial and implicit culture. It is not apparent in the infrastructure
or other material objects of a society. It is to be found in thoughts, ideas, values and rituals of a
society. They affect the actions of human beings in society. This type of culture includes:
Norms
Customs
Values
Folkways
Language
Functions of Culture
A culture plays vital role in the society. Being an important ingredient of society, culture has following
important functions to materialize in a society:

A. Transfer of Knowledge
Culture is Transmissive in nature. It helps in transmission of customs, rituals and the knowledge
behind everything it bears.

Transfer of knowledge becomes possible as a function of culture when a young generation

conceives cultural practices from the preceding generation. The young ones of a society see cultural
practices being observed. This makes them ask about the rationale and reason behind the acts of
their elders. In this way transfer of cultural knowledge takes place.

Another manifestation of transfer of knowledge in culture is when socialization takes place in a

peculiar culture. This socialization transfers the knowledge of that specific culture to the individuals
being socialized.

Culture transfer knowledge form one society into another society as well. This happens when people
from one culture go to live in another culture. They carry with them the cultural knowledge to share
with others which might be accepted or rejected.

The folk-tales produced by a specific culture also transfer as knowledge to the generations coming.
Similarly, cultural history is transferable.

B. Define Situation
A culture plays role in defining a situation. Human being faces several scenarios in a day. Culture
defines those scenarios and situation by;
Giving him knowledge about it
By teaching him how to behave and act in that situation
By telling what the situation means to the society
By giving him a comparative view of situation
By bringing forth how others act during such situation
Take a common example that there has arisen a dispute between two families in a traditional village.
Now what their culture normally defines this situation is that they would go to the elders of the
village. The elders will call a meeting to hear both the sides and decide the matter. In this way
culture defined a conflicting situation.

Similarly, culture defines the situation of a wedding ceremony, a funeral, a public gathering etc.
Defining a situation by culture helps the culture itself in establishing concrete cultural practices and
regulating the social setup. Gradually, the defined situations become customs of a society.

C. Provide Behavior Pattern

Behavior is manner of action and reaction by human beings in society. Culture in itself is learned and
demonstrated behavior which sets the pattern of human conduct. Culture teaches man how to
behave for a particular situation. For instance, it is behavior pattern that a person who becomes
father distributes sweet among his co-villagers. Similarly, it is a behavior pattern taught by culture
that people share happiness on a wedding and share sorrow on a funeral in a society.

D. Molds Personality
Culture molds personality. Its manifestation can be seen in two important cases. First is a child who
is brought up in a specific culture. Gradually culture molds him into a person with common behavior
and practices in society.

Similarly, a person who leaves his country to go and live in abroad for the sake of earning money
adapts to the foreign culture. This molds his personality to the new customs and circumstances. He
begins to practice the behavior pattern taught to him by the new culture.

Besides these functions, some other functions of culture include;

Socialization of human being
Interprets society
Creates needs and methods to achieve them
Regulates social relationships
Elements of Culture
Culture is composition of following major elements:
A. Norms
Norm is defined as 'informal understandings that governs individuals' behavior in society'. It is one of
the cultural products along with being an important element of culture.

Norm is observed by the individuals of a culture who if deviate from it are taken as victim of deviance
and anomy. An example of norm is handshaking between the contesting and competing players
after game. Norm is also referred as something usual, typical or standard.

B. Values
'Values are general standards and may be regarded as higher order norms.' Cultural values vary
from society to society just like norms. Values of a culture has shaped by religion, morality and
ethics observed by the people of those culture. History also puts considerable influence on values of
a society. Usually norms are specific, values are not. This defines the relationship between them.
Values are often attributed with the measures of goodness and desirability.

C. Beliefs
Belief is mental representation of an attitude positively oriented towards the likelihood of something
being true. Belief in a culture can be of superstitious as well as religious nature. Beliefs erupt from
the religious teachings most of the time but that not always the case. A culture might have beliefs
which are based on historical practices and folkways of a society. A common example comes from
the traditional Hindu societies which are considered full of people with strict belief in superstitions.

D. Sanctions
Any kind of means by which conformity to socially approved standards is enforced, is called social
sanction. Sanctions can be negative as well as positive. They can be formal as well as informal.

E. Customs
Custom is a traditional and widely accepted way of behaving or doing something that is specific to a
particular society. Customs constitute an important part of any culture.
Culture and Socialization
1. What is Socialization?
Socialization refers to the means of bringing the individuals into the social and cultural world thus
making them social animal and a part of regular society.

2. Why Socialization is Necessary?

Socialization is inevitable because of the following reasons;
Child requires to be socialized to make them a part of social environment
Continuous dependence of children upon adults makes it necessary to socialize them
For learning language, culture, skills and making oneself acquaint with the social setup
3. Link between Socialization and Culture
Socialization and culture are definitely linked in a sense that the former is a way to instruct the latter.
Socialization is in fact a set of means and modes which enable an individual to learn the culture of a
society he or she is part of.

Socialization and culture are dependent on each other. When one says that an individual is being
socialized it does mean that that individual is being made familiar with the cultural norms, values and
customs of his society.

4. Modes of Socialization

A. Formal Socialization
Formal socialization refers to the planned and organized ways of socializing an individual. This is
done through proper institutions. For instance, early schooling of a child is a formal way to socialize
him.

B. Informal Socialization
Informal socialization is unplanned. In this mode a family socializes its young ones with the traditions
and customs it respects as part of its culture. A mother for example emerges to be a primary institute
of socializing her child in an informal way. Similarly, the childhood friends, playgrounds and siblings
all help in socializing the young one in an informal way.

5. What Agencies Socialize an Individual to Culture?

The agents which helps socialization of children to the culture include;
Family
School and other Educational Institutes
Friends and Playmates
Religious Seminaries
Media
State
6. What is taught in Socialization of Culture?
Socialization of culture actually teaches;
Social customs
Social norms
Social ethics
Social sanctions
Social expectations
Social behavior patterns
7. Conclusion
Socialization is inevitable for instructing culture not only to the young generation but also the elder
one in process of re-socialization. Culture acts as the chief subject of socialization.
Important Terms of Culture
In this sections several important terms as mentioned in the syllabus shall be defined and explained.
All these terms are somehow related to the subject of culture.

1. Transmission of Culture
Transmission of culture means moving of cultural traits from one generation to another generation or
from one culture into another culture.

Transmission is in the shape of ideas if they are norms and values. And if the culture is material then
this transmission could be seen in actions as well as material objects.

Causes
Cultural transmission occurs because;
It's a characteristic of culture
It's result of socialization
It's a product of individual interaction
Necessity
Cultural transmission is an inevitable and natural process that lays positive impact on the social
setup. It is one of the means of spreading the culture among the young people as well as the people
of other cultures.

2. Cultural Relativism
People either like their culture very much or abhor it. In between the two kinds of people, a third
category exists inspired by cultural relativism. This aspect teaches to respect the cultural differences
instead of condemning them. This concept is contrary to both ethnocentrism and Xenocentrism. It
amounts for;
Appreciation of cultural diversity
Logical understanding of all cultures
Respect for all cultures
3. Sub-Cultures
A sub-culture can be defined as a cultural group within a larger culture, often having beliefs or
interests at variance with those of the larger culture but still a part of it in the broader understanding.
Sub-cultures are formed as a result when a major culture begins to host people of diverse thoughts
and also when the larger culture fails to agree with the new social practices of a group of people
living in it.

4. Ethnocentrism
It accounts for two things;
Taking one's culture superior to others
Taking other cultures as inferior to one's own
Ethnocentrism is based on the perceptions of the people who do not like change. They think what
they have been practicing in their culture is the only right way and others are wrong.

5. Xenocentrism
Xenocentrism contrary to the ethnocentrism advocates the superiority of other cultures on one's own
culture. People under this idea are inspired by the other cultures. For instance, it is common in the
youth of South Asian cultures to get inspired by the Western cultures and abhor their own.
6. Cultural Lag
When the material conditions change but these changes in the adaptive culture do not synchronize
exactly with the change in the material culture, this delay is the culture lag. In easy words, the culture
often takes its time to catch up with the material advancement which is rapid in the modern societies.
Contrary to that the norms and customs lag behind the development in materialism.

7. Cultural Lead
This concept is opposite to that of cultural lag. In here, the non-material culture leads and the
material culture lags behind. This happens in the developing countries where the societies are
mostly rich in culture but they are not developed materially.

8. High Culture
High culture refers to a culture which is comparatively rich than the rest of the cultures. It is most of
the times taken in terms of richness in arts and literature produced by a culture. In sociology, High
Culture accounts for richness in customs and cultural norms most of the times. Usually the Western
countries which hosted ancient civilization have comparatively high cultures and centuries old
traditions.

9. Popular Culture
Popular culture is defined as the culture that is "left over" when we have decided what high culture
is. It is modern term originated with the rise of mediums like sports, music, politics, fashion etc. The
role of internet and media is enormous in coining the term of popular culture. It is also called 'Pop
Culture'.

10. Multiculturalism
It is an association of several cultures in one society. This normally happens when a society begins
to welcome the aliens to live in it. They bring with them their own cultures which usually grow on the
sidelines of the main culture. Its example come from the US, Canada and India which are the giant
centers of multiple cultures.

11. Assimilation
Cultural assimilation refers to the process of gradual adaptation of a culture by a minority group
living under it and which was aboriginally not a part of it. This assimilation enhances the circle of a
culture bringing new people into it. This assimilation is common to be seen when migrants move to
live abroad and gradually adapt themselves to the new cultural norms.
Characteristics of Society
A society is characterized by following important features:
Groupings of individuals
Common culture along with distinct sub-cultures
Definite territory with fluid boundaries
Common social practices
Likeliness
Cooperation and competition
 Common cultural norms and customs
Mutual aid
Interdependence of social animals
- Community
- Relationship between Man and Society
- Social & Cultural Evolution of Society
Community
In words of renowned sociologist MacIver, "Community is an area of social living marked by some
degree of social coherence".

Characteristics of Community
A community has following distinct characteristics;
Commonness among individuals
Specific position within the society
Communal sentiments
Likeliness of thoughts and beliefs
Common history
Can be of small or large groupings
Particular identity
Communal distinction can be of political, religious or economic nature
Society and Community - A Comparison
1. A community is a specie of a society
2. Community lies within the society
3. Community is narrower while society is broader concept
4. Community is concrete while society is abstract concept
5. Communal sentiments are more obvious in community than in society
6. A society can be comprised of several communities
Relationship between Man and Society
'Man is a social animal.' Nothing better explains the relationship between man and society than the
said words of Greek philosopher Aristotle. The material and practical basis of the relationship
between man and society is however has also been described in several important theories, two of
which will be discussed in this topic.

Relationship between Man and Society?

The words 'relationship between man and society' formulates one of the major debates of sociology.
It won't be wrong to state that the sociology as a subject finds basis of its origin in this debate.
Sociology which is concerned with the society cannot conceive its existence if a society is empty of
individuals.

Theories on Man and Society Relationship

Two important theories in this regard are following;
A. Social Contract Theory
It is the most cherished theory which tries to explain;
The origin of society
Relationship between individual and society
Explicit or implicit submission of social animal to the will of the state
Social contract theory is based on the separate works of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and
Rousseau who showing an agreement on the origin of society under definite evolutionary phases
varied on the circumstances which led to its origin.

Thomas Hobbes presented this theory for the first time in his famous work 'Leviathan'. He stated that
man was brutal and nasty in the primitive history. There was a situation of war of all against all. Then
men got exhausted of it and sat down to devise a plan for peace in their lives. This made them to
shape a proper society. And in this society the relationship between them was based on cooperation
along with healthy competition. The individuals of the society did choose from among themselves a
sovereign who could effectively govern the whole of the society. They made a pact with him in this
regard.

John Locke while agreeing with the views of Hobbes, dared to differ in the very first point. According
to his scheme of social contract, man was never brutal. He was living a peaceful life. It was the
institution of private in society that made him make a social contract with his fellows as well as the
sovereign he chose.

Rousseau differed in the point of sovereign's choice. According to him, it is right that man became
nasty in race for grabbing private property but he didn't choose a sovereign. It was the general will of
the people of the society that became sovereign.

B. Organismic Theory
In an attempt to explain the relationship between individual and society, Herbert Spencer forwarded
his organismic theory of society.

Herbert Spencer pointed out that human society is like an organism. He gave following important
aspects in this regard;
Society like organism grows or develops gradually. The human organism goes through the
laws of development, maturation and decline. Similarly society also passes through some
taws such as the laws of birth, growth and change or decay.
Both society and organism become victim of germs.
Society and organism both exhibit differential structure functions.
Both society and organism are composed of units. Society is composed of the individuals and
thus, individuals are considered as the units of society. Similarly, organism is also composed
of different organs such as eyes, ears, hands, legs, head etc., and these are regarded as the
units of an organism.
Both in society and organism there exists close integration or interdependence of parts. Just
as the different parts of the organism are mutually interdependence and on the whole, also the
 individuals in a dependent are mutually interdependent like the cells in an organism
dependent in the whole.
Analysis
Both the theories - social contract and Social Organism - are quite helpful in defining the relationship
between man and individual. The theories carry some flaws but despite being very old, still theorize
the modern societies and their relationships with the individuals they host.
Social & Cultural Evolution of Society
Society is the child of evolution. Today, in the 21st century, we see a society more advanced and
developed than ever before. Behind this contemporary phase, there is history of evolutionary phases
of social and cultural development each marked with different features.

Social and Cultural Evolutionary Phases of Society

The most appropriate and cherished work of socio-cultural evolution of society is based on the study
of primary means of subsistence. Taking these means as the focal point, sociologists have studies
six major evolutionary phases of society which are explained characteristically below;

A. Hunting & Gathering Society

Individuals of this society used to find their subsistence on hunting the animals and gathering food
from forest plants. This society being the earliest one was marked with following characteristics;
Mobile and Fluid
Consist of Nomadic People or Wanderers
Low population density
Division of labor was present
Lack of surplus food
Continuous struggle to seek food
B. Herding & Advance Herding Society
Individuals living in this society were dependent upon the herding of farm animals. Domesticated
livestock was their primary means subsistence. This society carried following features;
Nomadic people who used to move in search for fresh pastures for animals
Division of labor was present
Food was adequate as along with hunting and gathering, herding became their source
Greater population density than in the previous society
As far as the society of advance herding is concerned, it developed with the introduction of modern
mechanized methods of herding.

C. Horticultural Society
At this evolutionary phase of society, individuals begin to find resources of subsistence in cultivation
of crops with the help of hand tools. This society was marked with following characteristics:
Larger population density
Establishment of rural life
Surplus food
Work in fields
Division of labor
 Settled and non-nomadic society
D. Agrarian Society
Horticultural society transformed into agrarian society with the introduction of agriculture as a
profession. In this society following characteristics were obvious:
Use of modern tools for agriculture
Introduction of money crops
Agriculture adopted as a profession
Surplus crop production
Accumulation of excessive crops
Sale of crops
Greater population density
E. Industrial Society
With the industrial revolution the society began the phase of rapid transformation. Establishing
industry which aimed at larger mechanized production was marked with following features;
Institution of profit
Production
Laborers and wages concept
Working hours and idea of jobs
More than required food was available
Industrial revolutions in Europe in 18th and 19th centuries
F. Post Modern Society
After the industrial revolutions the means of subsistence changed and society faced a boost in
advancement. Post Modern society became obvious with rise of following prospects;
Service oriented work
Large scale production
Age of information technology
Concepts of knowledge and Creativity
Extensive mechanization in society
Population boom
Vast urban centers
Conclusion
Society is mobile. It has transformed shape from in different phases of its evolution. Societal
development is in fact a concept subject to the advancement of individual both intellectually and
materially. Social development is a natural process monitored by human actions.
Social Interaction
Society is the product of regular social interactions between individuals it hosts. In order to give an
appropriate meaning to the social life and provide a desired atmosphere for social beings, it is
inevitable to organize the social interaction.

What is Social Interaction?

Social Interaction refers to the patterns of direct and indirect contact between the individuals in the
wake of social relationships.
Purpose of Studying Social Interaction
Following purposes can be enumerated for studying social interaction;
To learn how interaction occurs at personal and group levels
To learn how people organize themselves in various social conditions of interaction
To learn how relationships are maintained with interaction
To learn what makes interaction weak leading to disintegration of relationships