MSc Sociological Research / Course details

This course explores the following weekly topics.

1. Introduction
2. Critical Social Theory and the Sociology of Intellectuals:
3. Sociology of Intellectuals, New Class: Mannheim
4. Criticism in Different Cultural Contexts

Intellectuals, Sociology and the Transformations of Critical Thought

The overall aim of the course is to provide elements of the theoretical frameworks and analytical skills necessary for a thorough understanding of the nature of social theory in relation to cultural analysis in terms of both the cultural forms and the mediating texts through which they both exist. This will be done through an exploration of the debates around the nature of sociology's disciplinary formation in relation to other cultural disciplines and via a sociological analysis of the shifting role of intellectuals and the emergence of new forms of cultural expression. Secondly, the course will explore significant topics of concern to and difficulty for intellectuals: the topics focused on will be Nationalism, Globalization and Consumption as they have emerged as dimensions of highly mediated forms of collective and individual intellectual and cultural identity within the transformed and internationalized field of the social.

The principle objectives of the module are:

• Explore the distinctive contribution of social thought for the generation of sociological knowledge.
• To impart an understanding of the nature and significance of crucial aspects of social theory
• To foster a capacity for the critical evaluation of key theorists and theoretical texts.
• To encourage a capacity to write both critically and analytically about the themes of the module.

Each week contains a mix of pre-recorded and timetabled, live sessions

A 3,000 word assessed essay (100%)

Helpful General Survey material on Intellectuals

• C.Kurzman, L.Owens, 'The Sociology of Intellectuals' Annual Review of Sociology, Vol. 28, 2002, pp. 63-90
• E.Said, Representations of the Intellectual : 1993 BBC Reith Lectures
• S.Fuller, (2006) The Intellectual, London, Icon Books
• K.Milburn (2019) Generation Left, Cambridge, Polity (useful on recent generational changes in intellectual formation)