Plato

Is a student of Socrates, and is one of the world’s best-known philosophers. He wrote the “The
Republic”.

According to him, societies are formed towards a particular purpose. A human being is not self-sufficient
because he or she is capable of producing everything that he or she needs for survival.

Societies are formed out of individual necessity. People form a community because of their
interdependence on one another. Societies are, therefore, formed for mutual benefit.

He maintained that specialization is the reason for and justification of society. Each individual has his or
her own field of specialization; this specialization will determine his or her role in the society where he
or she exists. If an individual practices his or her specialization, then the individual will be able to
maximize his or her potentials, making his or her existence more fruitful and beneficial to the society.
This will also lead to smooth operation of the whole society.

The principle of specialization:

1. Rulers- are responsible in making decisions. They must possess the virtue of wisdom,
understand reality, and be impartial in making decision.
2. Soldiers- are tasked in defending the state against threats to domestic and external security.
They must possess the virtue of courage, and be obedient in carrying in carrying out orders
despite of personal risk.
3. People- are the governed. They must exhibit the virtue of moderation and the ability to set aside
personal desires for a higher purpose.

Aristotle

A student of Plato and the teacher of Alexander the Great, Aristotle discussed the city(polis) in
his work entitled Politics. He considered the city as a natural community which had prior importance
than the family, for he believed that the whole is more important than its parts. Nonetheless, he
recognized the importance of family because it creates the structure pf society in which important
goods such as loyalty and political involvement are cultivated.

He described man as a political animal by nature and regarded politics as similar to an organism
rather than a machine. This organism comprises parts none of which can exist without the others. His
idea about city is organic. For him, the aim of the city is not just to avoid injustice or to attain economic
stability, but rather to enable citizens to live a good life and to do noble deeds or actions.

Contrary to his teacher (Plato), Aristotle thought that the middle class must rule the city (state)
because they are capable of checking the tendency of the few (the oligarchs) to accumulate wealth; they
have some stake in society because they possess property, and they are more likely to take care of the
basic needs of the poor. Similar to his teacher, he believed that rulers must be wise and educated.
Lastly, he believed in private ownership because nobody will take care of property if nobody owns it,
and that nobody will know how to be generous without having possessions. Moreover, every individual
is unable to resist ownership of property. There must be a balance between a ban on private property
and unlimited accumulation of wealth.

CONFUCIUS

He is a famous Chinese philosopher, teacher, and political analyst whose tenets and teachings became
the foundation of Confucianism.

He believed that it is intrinsic to every individual to be in the company of other people, that is, in society.
It is only in society that an individual will be able to maximize his or her full potential. It is imperative,
therefore, for people to learn how to behave in the society where they belong.

For him, every individual belongs to specific place in society with corresponding duties attached to it. He
believed that observance of each duty contributes to order and harmony in the society. Therefore, he
grouped the people into five relationships.

The following are the five relationships:

1. Ruler and subject

2. Father and son
3. Elder brother and younger brother
4. Husband and wife
5. Friend and friend

Confucianism, as a philosophy is based on the idea of love and compassion. Societies where morals and
virtue are given highest regard are likely to proper. He highlighted the value of a code of conduct for the
society. He also stressed that, “doing what is right or wrong is a matter of choice of every individual”. If
each member just performs his or her part efficiently by choosing or doing what is right, then society will
be in harmony. Lastly, he believed that men by nature are good.

NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI

He is an Italian philosopher, historian, and founder of the modern political science. He wrote The Prince
to serve as a guide in ruling a region or a state. In it, he described a “good” society and the guidelines for
creating one. Machiavelli believed that a representative government is the ideal form of government,
but still insisted on the possibility of forming a “good society” governed by a monarch. However, the
authority of monarch must be clearly defined. He realized that humans are inherently inclined to act
destructively and, therefore, it is the duty of the prince to control or temper this nature in a way that
will benefit society as a whole. He believed that society should be handled in a practical, effective way.
The principal foundations of all states are good laws and good armies. It is the duty of the prince to
establish these firm foundations.

For Machiavelli, leaders must be both virtuous and vicious. However, a leader must learn how to
disguise his vicious characteristics and to highlight his virtuous qualities. To make people obey the rules,
leaders could use laws or force. Laws are better but for him they are not enough. So, a good leader
should also know how and when to employ force. If the prince exemplifies virtue and asserts his
authority over his subjects, then, a good society is possible.

THOMAS MORE

He wrote Utopia in 1516, a narrative depicting a kind of society and its religious, social, and political
customs. It is a Greek word which literally means, “no-place-land”. It attempts to solve the problems of
the 15th and 16th centuries by prescribing an ideal republic. Utopia focuses on politics and social
organization as compared to Plato’s Republic which is more on justice. In order to achieve an ideal
republic, the following principles are introduced in Utopia.

1. The first principle is the “elimination of private property”.

2. The second principle is the “universal nature of labor”.
3. The third principle is “the role of moderated pleasure in social life”.
4. The fourth principle is “the role of family as the microcosm of state”.

THOMAS HOBBES

He is an English philosopher, who wrote The Leviathan which became the basis of most Western
political philosophy from the perspective of the social contract theory.

He began with a description of human nature. He elucidated of what would it be like without a society
or government. He described this condition as “state of nature”. In this state of nature, each person can
do whatever he or she pleases to do without fear of being punished. For him, people by nature are
egoistic and will continue to promote their own self-interest. The state of nature is simply understood as
“absence of authority”. This condition according to him will lead to war.

In Leviathan, he offered a solution to enable people to escape from the “state of nature”. He argued
that war will not benefit anyone. Thus, people living in a state of nature agreed to a social contract and
formed a civil society. For him, a society is the population of people governed by a sovereign authority.
This population gives up their natural rights that exist in a state of nature for the sake of mutual
protection.

He added that the subjects must endure the abuses of the sovereign as a consequence of attaining
peace rather than to go back again to the state of nature. He advocated for absolute monarchy for he
believed that the sovereign must control the civil, military, and judicial institutions including the church.

John Locke

He is an outstanding English philosopher and physician, who is widely known as the “ Father of Classical
Liberalism”.

He believed that the reason why men want to abandon the ideal state of nature is due to the
“inconveniences” suffered by the majority of rational people. This includes the ignorance of laws, unfair
adjudication, and lack of authority to enforce the laws, and hence the vulnerability of people violated by
the strong who imposed their will. He strongly opposed unlimited sovereignty for rulers.

JEAN JACQUES ROUSSEAU

He is a Swiss philosopher who wrote the Social Contract and Emile, a treatise on education. He
described the state of nature as barbaric, lawless, and devoid of morality. The sovereign must be
exercise by the people. The sovereign is the rule of law to be directly enacted by the people in a formal
assembly.

JOHN STUART MILL

He is British philosopher, economist and civil servant, and one of the proponents of utilitarianism.

He believed that limiting the scope of authority of the government was not enough. He added, “society
can and does execute its own mandate: and if it uses wrong mandates instead of rights, or any
mandates at all in things which it ought not to meddle, it practices a social tyranny more formidable
than many kinds of political oppression, since, though not usually upheld by such severe penalties, it
leaves fewer means of escape, penetrating much more deeply into the details of life, and enslaving the
soul itself”.

Sociology and its Importance

Sociology is derived from a French word “sociologie” coined by Auguste Comte. The term is taken from
the Latin word “socius” meaning “partner or group” and the Greek word “logos” meaning “to study”. If
the two words are put together, it will mean the study of group.

Sociology is the scientific study of human societies and human behavior in the many groups that make
up a society. Sociologist must ask difficult, sometimes embarrassing questions about human life in order
to explore the cataclysmic events such as those that shut down factories or even enslave people. To
understand the possible futures of people who confront such drastic changes, sociologists are
continually seeking knowledge about what hold societies together and what makes them bend under
the impact of major forces such as war and migration.

Importance of Sociology

1. Sociology examines the relationship between the different structures and institutions in the
society and how it contributes to the development of individual members.
2. Sociology helps in the resolution of societal problems which are believed to hinder society’s
progress and development.
3. Sociology serves as a tool in disseminating information of what is happening around us.
 4. Though sociology, human being’s culture is greatly enhance and cultivated. The individual is able
to adjust himself or herself to present conditions that pave the way for new discoveries and
inventions.
5. Through sociology, an individual is able to understand the behavior of human beings in society.
He or she is able to examine how and why people act the way they do.
6. Sociology is able to rationalize the existence of social groups as a factor in social development.
7. Sociology is an indispensable vehicle toward world understanding. The world is divided
politically giving rise to stress and conflict. People have failed to bring about peace. Sociology
can helps us in understanding the underlying causes and tensions of the world problems.

Nature of Sociology

Sociology is a broad discipline since it analyzes behavior that shapes society. It involves systematic
methods of investigation and the evaluation of theories based on evidence and reason. But studying
human behavior cannot be based directly on natural sciences, because it is fundamentally different from
studying the world of nature.

Sociologists investigate social life by posing different questions and find answers by carrying out
systematic research. These questions may be factual, comparative, developmental, or theoretical.

Macrosociology and Microsociology

Macrosociology is a division of sociology that analyzes social system and population on a large scale, and
often, at a high level of abstraction. It can also be the analysis of large collectivities. It deals with issues
such as war, problems if Third World nations, poverty, and environmental degradations. Hence,
macrosociology focuses on social structures and organizations and the relationship between them.

Microsociology, on the other hand, is concerned with everyday human social interactions on a small
scale. It focuses on social interaction particularly on what people do when they come together. It deals
with issues like gender role, nature of the family, and immigration.

Branches of Sociology

1. Socioeconomics- is the study of the relationship between economic activities and social life.
Economics focuses on wealth, trade, consumption, and behavior patterns of society.
2. Sociology of Education- concerned with the role and functions of the educational system in a
society.
3. Sociology of the Family- studies the very foundation of the family as an institution and how it
relates to its environment.
4. Criminology- studies the nature and causes of crime and deviant behavior, the behavior and
activities of criminals, and the criminal justice system.
5. Sociology of Religion- is concerned with the role to the religion in the society, specifically its
practices, historical backgrounds, developments, and universal themes.
 6. Industrial Sociology- tackles theoretical and empirical issues and covers topics such as
spirituality and community, and religion in multicultural societies.
7. Political Sociology-is the study of the relationship between society and politics.
8. Environmental Sociology- is the study of the mutual interactions among the physical
environment, social organization, and social behavior. It emphasizes the study of social factors
that lead to environmental issues and problems, and how these problems affect society.

Relationship of Sociology with other Social Sciences

Sociology and History. This discipline is related in the sense that history records the past, which
people have lived. Sociologists study available historical materials to understand social and
cultural changes.
Sociology and Political Science. Both discipline study the nature of the distribution of power in a
society. Political science is concerned with political institutions which are just part of the social
institutions covered by sociology.
Sociology and Economics. Both disciplines study the behavior of individuals. Economic
institution is one of the several institutions of human society. Sociologists examine the
functioning of the economic institution in relation with other institutions.
Sociology and Psychology. The concepts of status and role link the disciplines of psychology and
sociology. Status refers to the social position in which individual occupies, and the behavior he
or she demonstrates by virtue of that position is called role.
Sociology and Anthropology. These two disciplines can easily be distinguished from one another.
Although both specialize in the study of society and have contributed to the development of
theories, anthropologists have broadened the knowledge of kinship and religion, which is
important in understanding simple society through fieldwork, while sociologist have advanced
the survey method of data collection.

People behind the Development of Sociology as a Science

1. AugusteCompte- He is a French mathematician and philosopher who proposed a separate new

science of society. The science was known as “Social Physics”. However, he discovered that
AdolpheQuetelet, a Belgian mathematician, had made use of the term prior to him. He found
out that it is necessary to invent the term “sociologie”. In 1839, he changed it into “sociology”, a
word he conceived. He divided sociology into two areas:
a. Social Static. It is concerned with the various parts of the society and how these parts are
held together.
b. Social Dynamics. It is concerned with the analysis of change within and among the various
parts of the society.
He is generally considered as the “Father of Sociology” and is the best known for his six-
volume Positive Philosophy. He identified three stages in understanding society:
a. Theological Stage- It is said that society is an expression of God’s will. The human being,
with the able guidance of the church, is capable of fulfilling the divine plan, to live in
accordance with God’s will.
 b. Metaphysical Stage- During this stage, people no longer believed that society is the work
of supernatural forces. People place more emphasis on the forces of nature rather than
God in explaining social events.
c. Scientific Stage- This approach is called positivism, which he defined as a path to
understanding the world based on science. The philosophy emphasizes the techniques
of observation, comparison, and experimentation in the development of knowledge
regarding the nature of society and human action.
2. Herbert Spencer- He is a British philosopher-scientist who advanced the thesis that evolution
accounts for the development of social and natural life. He stressed that society is similar to
living organism with parts working together in order to survive. Society must adapt to its
environment to effect natural change, which will inevitably bring progress and perfection in
society. He is best known for his social evolution theory. According to him, societies developed
through a process of “struggle” and “fitness”, which he referred to as the “survival of the
fittest”.
3. Karl Marx- he is a philosopher, economist, and a social activist, who stressed that history is a
continuous clash among conflicting ideas and forces between parts of society. He believed that
conflict between the bourgeois and proletariat is necessary in order to produce social change
and a better society.
a. Economic Determinism- it means that economic relationships provide the foundation on
which all other social and political arrangements are built. He believed that family structure,
law, and religion would developed after adapting to the economic structure.
b. The Dialectic- He viewed change as a product of contradictions and conflicts between parts
of society.
4. Emile Durkheim- He is a French intellectual who devoted himself in understanding the stability
of society and the importance of social participation for individual happiness. The lasting legacy
of him is a theory that examines the positive contributions of social patterns. This and his other
works allow us to see the importance of both order and change in society. According to his
classic study, Suicide, when society over-regulates and there is less freedom, ”fatalistic suicide”
occurs. When there is too much freedom and less regulation, “anatomic suicide” happens.
5. Max Weber- He is German Economist, historian, and philosopher. He believed that to
understand the behavior of a person, people have to understand the meaning of the individual
attributes of that behavior.

Understanding Society

Meaning of Society

Society is the system of community life in which individuals form a continuous and regulatory
commission for their mutual benefit and protection. Hence, to be part of the society, one must share
common interests, mutual relationships, values, and motives.

Sociological Theories and Perspectives of Society

 1. Structural Functional Perspective. Stresses the idea that relations among individuals, groups,
and societies, follow well-defined patterns of social organization.
2. Conflict theory. Addresses the point of societal stress and conflict and the way contribute to
social change.
3. Symbolic-interaction Perspective. This theory addresses the subjective meanings of human acts
and the process through which people come to develop and communicate shared meanings.

Early Societies

A. Hunting and Gathering Societies. They used simple technology to hunt animals and gather edible
vegetation for survival. Stone and wood were the predominant raw materials for the making of
tools and weapons.
B. Horticultural, Fishing, and Pastoral Societies. Horticultural societies used simple hand tools to
raised crops. Fishing societies were more advanced. The fishermen had permanent houses.
Pastoral societies engaged in herding domesticated animals.
C. Agrarian Societies. Societies have advanced technology in the harnessing of animals,
development of metal tools, use of wheel, and improve knowledge of irrigation and fertilization.
This era is regarded as the “dawn of civilization”.
D. Industrial Societies. They used sophisticated machinery powered by advanced fuels to produced
material goods. The muscle power of humans and animals was no longer the basis of
production. Tools and machinery became more complex and efficient owing to the
incorporation of metal alloys such as steel.
E. Post-industrial Societies. A society of technically advanced nations, based largely on the
production and consumption of services and information instead of goods.