There are a number of concepts associated with the sociological theories of Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Michel Foucault. Among these concepts are ones such as power, control, capitalism and economics, bureaucracy, the division of labor, social stratification, religion, and authority. So too, struggles between society and individualism, freedom and authority, and the elite class and working class are a focus in their writings and theories.
Emile Durkheim is argued by many to be the founder of sociology. One of DurkheimÆs most important works was The Division of Labour in Society, including one of his most significant concepts, anomie. Durkheim viewed the division of labor as the chief guiding force of human societies and their progress. He felt that this force extended past economics and also guided political, administrative and judicial institutions. Durkheim did not believe that the division of labor stemmed from any propensity in human nature, but was rather a process of significant generality.
Max Weber is also considered a founder of modern sociology. In his most significant work, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber argued that the Puritan tendency to eschew worldly materialism actually served as a driving force of material acquisition. The humility within Protestantism and its focus on acceptance of mundane tasks and duties provided no evidence of upward-mobility or desire for acquisition. However, Weber argued it was these concepts that actually permitted a work and acquire ethic that manifested itself in capitalism. The focus on pride in oneÆs work gave rise to productivity, according to Weber.
Michel Foucault is considered more of a philosopher than a sociologist, but his views on the historical organization of power demonstrate the sociological elements of knowledge. In one of his most important works, Discipline and Punish, Foucault traces the development of prisons and argues t...