Sociological Theory

This course takes a close look at the foundational texts and critical concepts in the discipline of sociology, focusing on classical theorists. The primary goal of the class is to help students understand theories of society and the organization of human communities. Key authors include Marx, Durkheim, Weber, Dubois, Burke, Hobbes, Locke, Tocqueville, and Arendt. We will put these authors in their historical contexts, explore how they can be used now to understand the social world, and examine how they might be deployed in empirical research contexts.