This course is the first term of a year-long course surveying the theories and practices of sociology. In the first module of the course, we read exemplars of liberal/utilitarian political philosophy that early sociological thinkers reacted strongly against in formulating a new discipline. We then spend the major part of the course reading classical sociological writings by Marx, Durkheim, Du Bois, and Weber. We conclude the course by more briefly exploring key developments in twentieth-century social and political thought, focusing on key works by Polanyi, Arendt, Beauvoir, and Fanon. The problem of the construction of the theory “canon” – and its various silences and exclusions – is foregrounded in our analysis of these thinkers and texts. In this regard, the course operates at two levels, serving as an introduction to key concepts and problems that have formed the discipline of sociology *and* offering a sociology of knowledge that seeks to understand why those concepts and problems (and not others) have been selected as foundational to sociological inquiries.

Course Requirements:

Students will be required to produce several short papers over the course of the semester.

Intended Audience:

This course is required of graduate students in Sociology. This course welcomes entirely online participation.

Class Format:

The course follows a lecture format, although there will also be opportunity for seminar-style class discussions.