2.2 History of Sociology
For millennia, people have been fascinated by the relationships between individuals and societies. Many topics studied by ancient philosophers in their desire to describe an ideal society are still studied in modern sociology, including theories of social conflict, economics, social cohesion, and power (Hannoum 2003).
While people continue to theorize about how social life works daily, sociologists use the term theory to refer to a proposed explanation about social interactions or society. North American and European sociologists typically point to several scholars from the nineteenth century as foundational to the discipline and sociological theory. These scholars are largely European White middle-class men whose position in their societies shaped their viewpoints. Yet sociologists continue to debate who should be included as a theorist and part of “classical” sociological theory (Connell 1997; Alatas and Sinha 2017; Morris 2017). In this section, we introduce some of the lesser-known predecessors of classical sociologists who helped create a foundation for the discipline.
Precursors to Sociological Theory
Sociology has a variety of rich traditions across the world and history. Outside of what was occurring in nineteenth-century Europe, scholars point to ideas developed by Ibn Khaldun, José Rizal, and Pandita Ramabai Sarasvati as offering insightful applications of the sociological perspective to their societies. Khaldun predates the development of sociology in Europe, while Rizal and Sarasvati were contemporaries of the classical theorists but remain largely overlooked.
Ibn Khaldun (Present-Day Tunisia, 1332–1406)
As one of the originators of sociology, Khaldun studied the causes of historical events and how societies changed (figure 2.2). To account for these changes, he argued that there needed to be a way to distinguish truth from falsehood. What he proposed was social science. According to Khaldun, what was crucial in understanding the rise and fall of North African states was the difference between social cohesion in nomadic societies and that in sedentary societies. He argued that nomadic societies had strong social cohesion and that sedentary societies had less cohesion (Alatas 2017a).
José Rizal (Philippines, 1861–1896)
Filipino social thinker and activist Rizal wrote both fiction and non-fiction that analyzed Spanish colonialism and the possibilities of emancipation in the Philippines (figure 2.3). Instead, based on precolonial history, he pointed to how the Philippines was an advanced society. It was actually colonization that led to the myth of laziness and any “backwardness” the society was experiencing (Alatas 2017b).
Pandita Ramabai Sarasvati (India, 1858–1922)
A social reformer from India, Sarasvati was known for championing oppressed and exploited Hindu women and opposing British colonial rule (figure 2.4). Mostly through the form of social commentary and autobiography, she criticized the rigid and patr