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Sociology 100: Sociological Theory (Van Natta)

Brainstorming Keywords Activity

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Theories & Search Terms

Marxist: Marx, “class-based,” “class structure,” “mode of production,” etc.

  • Marxist OR Marx OR “class-based” OR “class structure” OR “mode of production” 

Weberian: Weber, “state-centric,” “bureaucratic state,” “status group,” etc.

  • Weberian OR Weber OR “state-centric” OR “bureaucratic state” OR “status group” 

Durkheimian: Durkheim, functionalism, modernization, norms, “civil society,” etc.

  • Durkheimian OR Durkheim OR functionalism OR modernization OR norms OR “civil society”

Du Boisian: "Du Bois," “double-consciousness,” “color line,” “material racism,” “racial uplift,” etc.

  • "Du Boisian" OR "Du Bois" OR “double-consciousness” OR “color line” OR “material racism” OR “racial uplift” 

 

A table showing a theory/lens/perspective, related theorists, and key concepts related to their theories
Theory/Lens/Perspective Example Theorist(s) Keywords
Postcolonialism/Decolonialism Abdullahi & Salawu on Ibn Khaldun; Frantz Fanon; Gloria Anzaldúa colonialism, imperialism, the "West" and the "rest", Global South
Class conflict Marx; Du Bois; Mills economic exploitation, proletariat, bourgeoisie, false consciousness, class struggle, economic inequality, revolution
Structural functionalism Durkheim functionalism, modernization, division of labor, collective conscience, anomie, social roles
Bureaucratic states, status groups, and meaning-making Weber political science, bureaucracy, religion, meaning
Symbolic interactionism Weber, Mead, Blumer, Goffman the self, meaning-making, performativity (performing self in society)
Gender analysis/feminism Marianne Weber, Charlotte Perkins Gilman gender roles, patriarchy, misogyny, standpoint theory
Critical Race Approaches Du Bois, Cooper, Wells, Crenshaw, Hill Collins racism, segregation, discrimination, color line, double-consciousness
Intersectionality Cooper, Wells, Crenshaw, Hill Collins, Anzaldúa multiple axes of oppression, identity formation, gender +race+class+++ analysis
Poststructuralism Foucault, Bourdieu Foucault: discipline, punishment, subjectivity, population control, circulation of power (not just top-down); Bourdieu: other forms of capital (not just economic, but also cultural, social, and symbolic), subjectivity/objectivity, embodied social norms