Annotated Bibliography on Introduction to Sociology

This annotated bibliography provides an insight into the quintessence of sociology and the various tenets, contributions and propositions made by sociologists. It includes readings on sociology by Peter Berger, C W Mill, Emile Durkheim, Erving Goffman, Michel Foucault, Max Weber and Georg Simmel.

Running head: ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
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1ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Essay plan
The discipline of sociology emerged as a response to the changing social events and
the task of the sociologist to identify and explain those events through a critical analysis of
the events (Cragun et al. 2014). Sociology is premised on the principles of debunking,
disrespectability, relativization and cosmopolitanism (Wolfe & Callahan, 2017). The study of
sociology enables an individual to contextualize the everyday social interactions and personal
troubles in the broader spectrum of issues that have been part of struggles in history.
Sociology is the science of examining social events through a critical lens.
 This essay on introduction to Sociology aims to introduce the readers to the
world of sociology and the various tenets, contributions and propositions made
by sociologists.
 It outlines the quintessence of sociology and in what ways it may be different
from natural sciences. There is a discussion on the methodological framework
that has been undertaken by Durkheim.
 Sociology has progressed through the years and have responded to the
changing vents like the bane of urban life to the critique of modernity.
 The scathing critique of modernity underlines that the generalized image of
modernity an emancipatory project is an illusion and conceals the social,
political and political evils that have been promoted and perpetuated.
 It concludes with the post-modernist and post structuralist approach envisaged
by Foucault about the modern institutions and how power is infused in the
body of the individuals.
 The literature (annotated bibliography) selected for the essay plan have been
found through the library research catalogue and the suggested readings in the
assignment.
 It is expected that the essay would be enriching to understand sociology by
anyone interested to engage with the subject and at the same time these
readings are widely cited for the study of sociology.

2ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Berger, P. (1963). Invitation to sociology. New York: Anchor, 1, 963.
Invitation to sociology
Peter Berger’s Invitation to Sociology is apt for the reading of the scientists who want
to understand the fundamental distinctions between the discourses of natural sciences and
social sciences. Penned in the year 1966, the book provides the reader an insight into the
essence and contents of sociology. The book’s major strength lies in its ability to focus and
critically examine the things that are closer to us. He exhorts the sociologists to not to look at
the cultural artifacts as de-contextualized and unpoliticized objects whereas on the contrary
those should looked with a critical lens.
Mills, C. W. (2000). The sociological imagination. Oxford University Press.
Sociological Imagination
C W Mill’s Sociological Imagination underscore on the distinction between personal
trouble and public issue. According to Mills, the very notion that individual troubles are
isolated events is a facade. Our personal troubles are situated in the broader context of public
issues all over the world. History is the manifestation of the individual trials and tribulations.
Individuals fail to understand that their personal failures are not unique and are located in the
larger society in which they live. The strength of the book is that it enables the reader to
contextualize their everyday issues and the weakness may be the strict intellectual parameter
set by Berger.
Bauman, Z. (1989). Modernity and the Holocaust. Cornell University Press.
Modernity and holocaust
Liquid modernity is a seminal text in the discipline of sociology that locates the
xenophobic attitude meted out to the Jews in the broader context of the essence of modernity.
The text brings out Bauman’s social location as a Jewish critical social scientist who always
had to be in the periphery because of his ethnic minority position. The author argues that the
theoretical complacency that has surrounded the event of holocaust. The strength of the book
lies in its reinterpretation of modernity and the identification of modernity as a bureaucratic-
rational event. The shortcoming of the text is that is a synthesis of different themes that have
been already addressed earlier by sociologists.

3ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Bauman, Z. (2013). Liquid modernity. John Wiley & Sons.
Liquid modernity
In Liquid modernity, Bauman encapsulates the nature of modern relationships as
fragile, loose and lacks the intense bond that had existed before the pre-modern era. Bauman
also emphasizes on the increasing fear of the stranger that is permeating into the society.
Spatial differentiation is growing in correspondence with social differentiation. This text is
the legacy of Bauman’s ethical or normative sociology. Bauman argues that the lack of ethics
in society is leading to disintegration of relationships both at the micro level as well as the
macro-level. The strength of the text lies in its befitting response to understanding the nature
of modernity whereas the possible drawback may be the presence of too many themes in one
book, quintessential to Bauman’s work.
Durkheim, E. (2013). Durkheim: The rules of sociological method: And selected texts on
sociology and its method. Palgrave Macmillan.
The Rules of Sociological Method
Emile Durkheim is considered as one of the key figures in the functionalist school of
sociology. For Durkheim, sociology is the scientific study of society where reality is
understood as sui generis. It underscores on the view that there are social facts that a
sociologist needs to intervene. Durkheim proposed that social facts are to be derived through
the pre-determination of legal facts. The strength of the text lies in its detailed account of
methodology. The drawback of the text lies in its positivist and functionalist orientation of
placing too much importance on the structure and overlooking the micro-level everyday
human interactions.
Goffman, E. (1959). The Presentation of Self in. Butler, Bodies that Matter.
The presentation of self in everyday life
Goffman, a micro-sociologist and important figure in the domain of symbolic
interaction argued that social interaction is the performance of roles. He used the analogy of
the front stage and back stage to underscore on the motivation of human action. In the front
stage, the social actors act according to the norms and expectations of the society. In the back
stage, the individual retreats from the given role. The strength of the text is that Goffman
criticizes the structuralist and functionalist theoretical strands and his contribution of

4ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
dramaturgical sociology. His weakness lies in not using the gender perspective to understand
the dramaturgical tenet.
Foucault, M. (2012). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. Vintage.
Foucault Discipline and Punish
Discipline and Punish highlights Foucault’s post-modernist approach towards the
existing issues in society. Foucault recognized that power is infused in the everyday social
relationships and the body becomes the site to manifest that power. In the pre-industrial
society the nature of punishment unveiled its power relationship with the body. The exertion
of one’s power through corporeality remains the same and has taken the shape in disciplining
the bodies in the industrial societies. The strength of the book lies in its nuanced approach of
identifying power and the possible critique would be the invisibilization of discussions on
gender, body and power.
Horkheimer, M., & Adorno, T. W. (2006). The culture industry: Enlightenment as mass
deception. Media and cultural studies: Keyworks, 41-72.
Enlightenment as mass deception by Adorno and Horkheimer
The concept of culture industry proposed by Adorno and Horkheimer is a critique of
the project of enlightenment. It was believed that enlightenment would be emancipatory and
pave the path for progress. On the contrary, enlightenment induced modernity, bureaucratic
rationality and capitalism has caused more harm than good. The aspect of culture has been
turned into a commodity, manufactured and sold in the capitalist market. This had culminated
to a culture of consumerism. The strength of the text lies in its critique of popular culture
through a neomarxist approach. The drawback lies in it ability to recognize the subjectivity of
the individual in preventing themselves to be cultural dopes.

5ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
Simmel, G. (2012). The metropolis and mental life. In The urban sociology reader (pp.
37-45). Routledge.
The metropolis and the mental life
Simmel also known for his formal sociology has highlighted about the impact of
mental health on the individuals residing in the metropolitan cities. Simmel encapsulates the
disposition of the modern urban culture. It emphasizes on the psychological implications on
the lives of individuals. In metropolis human interactions are short and there is an increasing
of animosity and doubt among the people. The strength of the book lies in its critique of the
implications of health in the backdrop of urban megalopolis whereas the weakness of the
book may be argued as Simmel’s pessimistic view about the society much like Weber.
Weber, M. (2013). The Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism. Routledge.
Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism
In Protestant ethic and spirit of capitalism, Weber makes an interesting analysis by
linking Protestantism and the rise of capitalism. According to Weber, the prevalence of
capitalism and entrepreneurial venture among the protestant believer may be attributed to the
specific qualities in the religious sect. Protestants believe that they should not engage in
hedonistic life and rather save the money made from the business venture. There is also an
emphasis on predestination and calling that is compatible with the temperament of capitalism.
The strength of the text lies in its ability to identify a phenomenon with specific values shared
by the group. The weakness lies in the overgeneralization of the explanation.

6ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
References
Bauman, Z. (1989). Modernity and the Holocaust. Cornell University Press.
Bauman, Z. (2013). Liquid modernity. John Wiley & Sons.
Berger, P. (1963). Invitation to sociology. New York: Anchor, 1, 963.
Cragun, R., Sumerau, J. E., Friesen, B., Carter, K., & Cragun, D. (2014). Introduction to
sociology. St. Petersburg, FL: Wikibooks.
Durkheim, E. (2013). Durkheim: The rules of sociological method: And selected texts on
sociology and its method. Palgrave Macmillan.
Foucault, M. (2012). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. Vintage.
Goffman, E. (1959). The Presentation of Self in. Butler, Bodies that Matter.
Horkheimer, M., & Adorno, T. W. (2006). The culture industry: Enlightenment as mass
deception. Media and cultural studies: Keyworks, 41-72.
Mills, C. W. (2000). The sociological imagination. Oxford University Press.
Simmel, G. (2012). The metropolis and mental life. In The urban sociology reader (pp. 37-
45). Routledge.
Weber, M. (2013). The Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism. Routledge.
Wolfe, C., & Callahan, J. S. (2017). Introduction to sociology.