Course Description
This course offers a comprehensive exploration of key social theories that have shaped sociology, covering a broad range of perspectives from classical thinkers such as Marx, Durkheim, and Weber to contemporary figures like Foucault, Bourdieu, and Butler. Students will critically engage with how these theorists interpret social structures, power relations, inequality, and human agency. We will explore how their work informs modern debates on topics such as gender, race, capitalism, imperialism, and identity politics, with particular attention to how these theories continue to evolve and challenge existing power dynamics in the 21st century.
Through this course, students will develop tools to critically analyze the foundational theories that underpin sociological thought and apply these concepts to contemporary social phenomena. This course encourages a rigorous approach to understanding how theory not only explains the world but also acts as a lens through which we can envision social change.