BASS Social Anthropology and Philosophy / Course details

Critical Theory / Hegemony/ Social Action & Social Interaction /Postmodernism/ Feminism/ Representation/Consumerism & Identity/Social Class/Capitalist Realism 

This course has two complementary aims. You will learn how social theory developed throughout the 20th and 21st centuries amidst new demands of rapid social change, political instability and technological advancement. You will learn to critically engage with a spectrum of ideas and different perspectives that will underpin your sociological understanding. At the same time, through this understanding of theory, we will work together to build group and individual resilience to the many challenges that vex our lives. Learning to become comfortable with nuance, contradiction and complexity is an urgent necessity in our contemporary social landscape mired by deliberate antagonism, mendacious falsehoods and divisiveness.

We will not treat theory as historical. We will interrogate the past, its successes and failures, and ask urgent question about contemporary issues and potential solutions. Social theory is alive. In this course, we will not treat theory as distant and abstract. Each week will take an important theory, theorist or body of thought and consider its application and implication in the here and now. We will critically engage with the core principles of sociological investigation, constructing a solid theoretical scaffold to support your degree, scholarship and citizenship.

Students who have completed the course should be able to write competently about a number of key theorists and issues in contemporary social theory. They should possess an understanding of how theories discussed in sociological thought have been extended, critiqued, and developed. Student should have a solid grasp of some of the key debates that structure contemporary social thought. They should be adequately prepared for engaging with the substantive theoretical content of any sociology courses they pursue later in their degree.

Weekly lectures Weekly tutorials

1 non-assessed assignment (400 words essay plan)

1 assessed coursework essay, 1500 words; 50% of mark

1 traditional format exam (2 hr/ 2 answers) 50% of mark.

All sociology courses include both formative feedback - which lets you know how you’re getting on and what you could do to improve - and summative feedback - which gives you a mark for your assessed work.

Allan, K. (2012). Contemporary Social and Sociological Theory. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.