ESOn4008 Current Themes in Sociology

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2022
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 10 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
doc. PhDr. Csaba Szaló, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. PhDr. Csaba Szaló, Ph.D.
Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Ing. Soňa Enenkelová
Supplier department: Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Prerequisites
SOUHLAS
Basic knowledge of sociological theories and methods is presupposed.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
This course will cover some of the most pressing themes in sociology in the early twenty-first century. A sociological theme is typically associated with a relatively long debate and tends to be an underlying concept or phenomena, recurring throughout it and unifying it. Discussed topics include recent social movements and civil action, urban subcultures of discontent, and the role of nonhumans in social reality. Seminars will deal with literature from multiple academic journals including, while also discussing studies in depth. Students are expected to actively participate in a seminar and write a term paper (2000 words) addressing the subject of one of the seminars. Term papers should discuss the chosen topic in reference to two academic texts published in a sociological journal in the last 10 years
Learning outcomes
Knowledge of the basic analytical apparatus of contemporary sociology. Ability to critically interpret and utilize articles published in academic journals for own research. Ability to employ relevant analytical apparatus for explaining various social processes and social problems.
Syllabus
  • 1. Recent social movements and civil action I: Culture in interaction.
  • 2. Recent social movements and civil action II: Place and politics.
  • 3. Recent social movements and civil action III: Deprived neighborhoods.
  • 4. Recent social movements and civil action IV: Post-disaster engagement.
  • 5. Urban subcultures of discontent I: The second nature.
  • 6. Urban subcultures of discontent II: Moral explanations.
  • 7. Urban subcultures of discontent III: Urban excess.
  • 8. Urban subcultures of discontent IV: Sociology of morality.
  • 9. Nonhumans in social reality I: Totems.
  • 10. Nonhumans in social reality II: Endargenment.
  • 11. Nonhumans in social reality III: Beyond ANT
  • . 12. Nonhumans in social reality III: Production.
Literature
  • Lichterman, P., & Eliasoph, N. (2014). Civic action. American Journal of Sociology, 120(3), 798-863.
  • McQuarrie, M. (2017). The revolt of the Rust Belt: place and politics in the age of anger. The British Journal of Sociology, 68, S120-S152.
  • Lama, J., & Tironi, M. (2019). Distributing Obligations, Performing Publics: Responsible Citizens in Post-Disaster Engagement. Qualitative Sociology, 1-23.
  • Tonkens, E., & Verhoeven, I. (2018). The civic support paradox: Fighting unequal participation in deprived neighbourhoods. Urban Studies, 0042098018761536.
  • Barnard, A. V. (2016). Making the city “second nature”: Freegan “Dumpster divers” and the materiality of morality. American Journal of Sociology, 121(4), 1017-1050.
  • Norton, M. (2018). The Persistence of Pardons and the End of Attainder: Moral Explanations, Relational Facts, and Institutional Forms. European Journal of Sociology/Archives Européennes de Sociologie, 59(1), 91-118.
  • Abbott, A. (2014). The Problem of Excess. Sociological Theory, 32(1), 1–26.
  • Hitlin, S., & Vaisey, S. (2013). The new sociology of morality. Annual Review of Sociology, 39, 51-68
  • Jerolmack, C., & Tavory, I. (2014). Molds and totems: Nonhumans and the constitution of the social self. Sociological Theory, 32(1), 64-77
  • Scoville, C. (2019). Hydraulic society and a “stupid little fish”: toward a historical ontology of endangerment. Theory and Society, 1-37.
  • Jansen, T. (2017). Beyond ANT: Towards an ‘infra-language’of reflexivity. European Journal of Social Theory, 20(2), 199-215.
  • Kameo, N., & Whalen, J. (2015). Organizing documents: Standard forms, person production and organizational action. Qualitative Sociology, 38(2), 205-229
Teaching methods
Active participation in seminar discussions. Presentations. Teamwork.
Assessment methods
Regular position papers. Final paper.
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2020, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2022, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2022/ESOn4008