1st Sem Sociology Notes Kashmir University Free PDF
NATURE AND SCOPE OF SOCIOLOGY
Emergence and Development of Sociology
Sociology emerged as a new subject in the later part of the eighteenth century and developed throughout the nineteenth century. The social events and crisis of this period laid down a
fertile terrain of ideas and new values that enabled sociology to take root. Following events comprised the major forces responsible for the emergence of sociology
1. Social Change and Sociology
Striking changes took place in Europe during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Three kinds of change were especially important in the development of sociology: the rise of a factory-based industrial economy, the explosive growth of cities, and new ideas about democracy and political rights. A New Industrial Economy: During the middle Ages in Europe, most people ploughed fields near their homes or worked in small-scale manufacturing (a term derived from Latin words meaning “to make by hand”). By the end of the eighteenth century, inventors used new sources of energy—the power of moving water and then steam—to operate large machines in mills and factories. Instead of labouring at home or in small groups, workers became part of a large and anonymous labour force, under the control of strangers who owned the factories. This change in the system of
production took people out of their homes, weakening the traditions that had guided community life for centuries. The Growth of Cities: Across Europe, landowners took part in what historians call the enclosure movement—they fenced off more and more farmland to create grazing areas for sheep, the source of wool for the thriving textile mills. Without land, countless tenant farmers had little choice but to head to the cities in search of work in the new factories. As cities grew larger, these urban migrants faced many social problems, including pollution, crime, and homelessness. Moving through streets crowded with strangers, they faced a new and gimpersonal social world.
