ASOC 22A01 - Global sociological debates

This course explores major sociological debates on how to explain contemporary social issues—responsibility, inequality, capitalism, race, religion, and violence—through a focus on Asian societies and case studies. At its core, the course trains students to approach social problems and debates like sociologists: by analyzing how they are constructed, debated, and addressed across contexts, and by exploring how individual actions (micro), organizational and institutional dynamics (meso), and broader structural forces (macro) interact in shaping social outcomes.

Each week tackles a major debate. We examine the relationship between individual agency and social structures, asking how responsibility and rationality are understood in everyday life. We explore competing visions of a “fair society,” looking at inequality, meritocracy, and the role of education and social capital.

The course then turns to questions of development and capitalism, comparing different economic models and their social consequences, particularly in postcolonial contexts. We also investigate how race, caste, and ethnicity operate as systems of identity and domination, and how these categories are defined and contested across societies. Building on this, we engage with debates on racial capitalism, considering how economic and social inequalities are interconnected.

In the final sessions, we explore the role of religion in shaping social norms, politics, and intimate life, before examining different forms of violence—from state power and organized crime to environmental and symbolic violence.

Throughout the course, students will engage with key theoretical texts alongside empirical case studies, developing the tools to analyze complex social issues from multiple perspectives. By the end of the course, students will be equipped to apply sociological frameworks to analyze real-world problems and evaluate policy responses with clarity and rigor.

24 hours of lecture, 8 sessions of 3 hours each Weekly conference de methode

1.Weekly Reading Analysis and Participation in Discussion Groups (10*3% = 30%

a.Before every section each student will post a short 300 word commentary, where they will refer to a quotation from one of the assigned texts for the class, discuss it in relation to the lecture, and then develop a question that can be discussed in the class. 10 such responses are due over the course of the semester.

b.In the following week, we will begin each lecture asking 1-2 students to report back from the exchanges in the Discussion Groups.

2.Presentation and Exposition on a reading from the course in the lecture, produced by a group of 2 students, consisting of a 15 minute exposition and a 15 minute Q&A facilitated by the students (10%)

3.Mid-term exam: Content examination to evaluate understanding of specific ideas introduced in the readings. (30%)

4.Final exam 30%