Assignment Code: BSOC-105/ASST/TMA/2021-22

Course Code: BSOC-105

Assignment Name: Political Sociology

Year; 2021-2022

Verification Status: Verified by Professor

Total Marks: 100

There are three Sections in the Assignment. You have to answer all questions in the Sections.

Assignment - I

Answer the following in about 500 words each.

Q1. Describe the emergence of political sociology. 20

Ans) The classical period is the first trend. It existed throughout the Greek and Roman eras, when man was largely considered as a political animal. He was then redefined in solely ecclesiastical terms and regarded an extension of God under the Holy Roman Empire. The classical period of political sociology is represented by political thinkers such as Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, St. Augustine, and St. Thomas Aquinas.

During the Enlightenment period, the second trend emerged. It was a huge argument between political philosophers from two different schools. Locke, Montesquieu, and Rousseau formed the first school, which was later joined by Saint-Simon, Comte, and Karl Marx. They all drew a clear line between society and government. The alternative school included philosophers such as Macheiavelli, Hobbs, Burke, Hegel, Bonald, and Maistre, who did not distinguish between society and politics and favoured the traditional monarchy and Church's hegemony and legitimacy. Furthermore, Max Weber, Maciver, and others made significant contributions to the development of political sociology.

The role of elites in society is the third tendency in the emergence of political sociology. In the seventeenth century, the term elite was coined to describe high standards. It was then expanded to include superior social groups such as extremely effective military units and the aristocracy's upper tiers. Pareto and Mosca, two Italian sociologists, used it extensively. In general, elite theorists thought that history was made by tiny groups of individuals who exerted themselves from time to time, rather than by ideas, the masses, or silent working forces. Elite theorists said that throughout history, there has always been a distinct stratum of rulers who constituted a small percentage of society and were able to maximise effective organisation and control due to their monopoly over essential resources. Military forces, ecclesiastical rule, economic dominance, and political power were all different from one culture to the next and from one century to the next.

The present period is the fourth tendency in the development of political sociology. This is a more empirical and analytical time period. It focuses on generating empirically provable generalisations that relate society and politics, with theory development as the primary goal. Leading political sociologists such as Lipset, Greer, Inkles, Moore, Kornhauser, Mills, Hunter, Janowitz, Lazarfield, Eisenstadt, Selnick, Rokkan, Gusfield, and Macrae are among the most renowned practitioners of current political theory. These political sociologists have been innovative in their approach, emphasising political sociology as a rigorous and mature social scientific subject.

Q2. Analyse the role of social institutions in the reproduction of elites. 20

Ans) The significance of social institutions in the reproduction of elites is virtually as essential as the inheritance of familial status. However, whether it is educational institutions or social clubs that elites choose to associate with, the latter remains a deciding element in the choice of social institution. On the one hand, social clubs serve the twin objective of forming an elite and, on the other hand, excluding non-elites from social power. Sociologically, such clubs are seen as a bulwark against the emergence of the new rich. The family elites are concerned about the rise in non-elites' economic mobility. In the face of such developments, the exclusive clubs' popularity grows even more, as does their exclusion from what they perceive to be the 'other.'

The new elites who join the clubs are persuaded to align their interests with the interests of the older elites. As a result, through having common interests and culture, the road is cleared for class consolidation. The elites are securely rooted in upper-class families, they mediate through institutions such as clubs, and they are driven by common interests, according to this understanding. While clubs and families provide elites with a foundation for social closure, educational institutions such as schools and colleges are more complicated. While they can provide a significant boost to an individual's upward mobility, they can also be the most restrictive gatekeeping institutions.

The increase in the number of schools and the shift in their educational systems have made them attractive ground for elite research. Schools have become a vehicle for reinforcing disparities, where pupils from the upper crust translate their birth right into credentials. This has a direct impact on how elitism is perpetuated in educational institutions.

Educational institutions have a clear relational logic that conforms to elite views. Consider the scenario of affluent boarding institutions. They became particularly popular in the late nineteenth century as a result of old established aristocratic families' desire to contribute to their cultural identity by classifying oneself from emerging wealth, industrialists, and the masses. As a result, schools, like social clubs, become breeding grounds for elitism. Consider the case of India to further understand how elitism and schools are related.

Assignment - II

Answer the following in about 250 words each.

Q3. Differentiate between state, nation, and society. 10

Ans) The differences between state, nation and society are:

Because the state is the most intense political association that guides man's social relationships and is the general control basis of society, its examination is clearly required for a human science understudy (sociology).

Population, territory, administration, and sovereignty are the four basic components of a state. In this sense, a state is a group of people who share a territory and live under a sovereign government. It is distinct from all other relationships in two ways: enrolment is necessary, and it possesses sovereignty.

The term "nation" refers to a collection of people who have created a sense of community based on shared cultural, religious, linguistic, and political identities. The broadest category of social organisation is society, which encompasses a variety of social institutions such as kinship, family, economy, and polity.

Because society predates the state in terms of time, people lived in society long before the state existed. The majority of society's authority comes from conventions and persuasion. While a state is a territorial entity, a society does not have a fixed location. It has the potential to affect the entire world. A society encompasses a person's entire existence as well as all of the relationships that bring them together. It refers to interconnected social ties. The birth of the Indian Nation State.

Q4. Outline the major features of bureaucracy. 10

Ans) The major features of bureaucracy are:

The bureaucracy relies on the following rules and regulations in order to function properly.

• Official duties are used to disperse the activities that make up bureaucracy among the officials.

• Officials are imbued with authority through a stable or regular system. The laws of the land place stringent limits on this authority.

• There are tight and meticulous procedures in place to guarantee that authorities carry out their responsibilities properly.

1. The three features described above define "bureaucratic authority," which can be found in developed and modern civilizations.

2. The second characteristic of bureaucracy is the existence of an authoritative hierarchy. This means that there is a well-established hierarchy of subordination and superordination. Higher authorities supervise and are accountable to lower officials. The benefit of this system is that citizens can appeal to higher officials if they are dissatisfied with lower officials. For example, if you are unsatisfied with a clerk's or a section officer's behaviour or performance in an office, you can appeal to a higher authority for redress.

3. The bureaucratic office is managed through the use of written documents or files. Clerks who have been specifically designated for this purpose protect and keep them properly.

4. The work in the bureaucratic office is highly specialised, and employees are appropriately trained.

5. A fully developed bureaucratic office necessitates the staff's complete operating capabilities. Officials may be forced to work overtime in this situation.

Q5. Describe different types of elites. 10

Ans) The following are the several categories of elites:

The Powerful Few

Pareto was the first to introduce this category. According to him, while some people are outstanding in their ability, others are inferior in their characteristics, making them non-elites. To him, the superiors are "elite." He further divides these elites into two groups, governing or ruling elites, and non-governing elites, based on their roles in society. The ruling elite, as the term implies, play a considerable role in the running of the government and its political processes, either directly or indirectly. The ruling elite are now divided into two groups: foxes and lions. Foxes are rulers who rule via cunning, manipulation, and deception. Lions, on the other hand, rule by uniformity, smaller bureaucracy, well-established rules, and centralised systems. As a result, lions are more conservative than foxes.

Economic Powerhouses

According to this perspective, the simplest approach to determine who is the society's dominant elite or governing group is to look into which group earns the most money. Even to have political authority in a society, one must first have economic power, because political power is derived from economic dominance. He uses capitalism as an example to support his argument. He claims that capitalism will be gradually supplanted by an economic and political system dominated by managerial elites, because capitalists have delegated management of their businesses to professional managers. This would happen as a result of a managerial revolution, in which the state support manager and the bureaucrat would become interchangeable as a result of state assistance.

Elites with Great Power

The prestige, position, influence, and authority of elites in modern society are determined by the power that emanates from an institution. With the power that an institution bestows on the elites, they are able to dictate the role of the rest of society, including the middle class and the people. Thus, Mills proposed that an individual's natural characteristics do not make him an elite, but rather the institution to which he is linked. He described companies, the military, and the government as three such elite institutions in American society. The decision-makers at these elite institutions engage in concert with one another in order to sustain and deepen each other's elitism.

Assignment - III

Write a following in about 100 words each.

Q6. Charismatic Authority 6

Ans) Charismatic leadership is founded on a person's remarkable dedication to him or her and the way of life he or she preaches. The validity of such authority is based on the person's belief in supernatural or magical abilities. Miracles, military and other successes, or the disciples' dramatic prosperity 'prove' the charismatic leader's power. Their influence will remain intact as long as charismatic leaders continue to 'prove' their miraculous powers in the eyes of their followers. Traditional ideas or written norms have little bearing on charismatic power. It is only due to the unique attributes of the leader who governs or rules in his own right. Because charismatic authority is unorganised, there is no paid personnel or administrative structure. The leader and his assistants do not have a regular job and frequently ignore their family obligations. These qualities can sometimes turn charismatic leaders into revolutionaries, as they disregard all social obligations and standards.

Q7. Citizenship 6

Ans) Citizenship can also refer to principles of equality and political involvement, as well as rules and behaviours that distinguish citizens from outsiders, thereby excluding some persons from the political community. A national citizenship regime includes the laws and procedures that control both inclusion and exclusion: who belongs in the political community, and how do the state's institutions distinguish citizens from non-citizens. Citizenship has a wide range of meanings. Because citizenship is about how individuals construct and remake the state, and it is through this making and remaking that we shall perpetuate the great goals of the democratic revolution, the personal and political come together in citizenship. Citizenship forms a link between individuals, the state, and the society in which they live, as well as a relationship having the element of a shared destiny, involving stakeholders with an interest in a common future.

Q8. Power 6

Ans) The phrase 'power' is commonly used to refer to strength or the ability to manage something. It is defined by sociologists as an individual's or a group's ability to realise their desires and put their decisions and ideas into action. It entails the ability to influence and/or control the actions of others, even while they are acting against their will. The traditional grounds for defining power are Karl Marx's and Max Weber's works. Economic structures, such as businesses, capital owners, and, more directly, the boss, are societal sources of power, according to Marx. Wages can be used to affect worker performance or attendance, which is a key feature of capitalism society. The link between worker, wage, and class interests, according to Marx, was the source of separating individuals not just from pursuing non-work-related self-interests, but also from each other. Power, according to Marx, has an economic framework rooted in social class ties.

Q9. Meaning of Democracy 6

Ans) Democracy is a political system that allows citizens to participate in political decision-making directly or through the election of political representatives. Demokratia is derived from the Greek demokratia, which combines demo ('people') and kratos ('rule' or 'power'). It is obvious that emperors, kings, and unelected dictators should not rule societies, but rather 'the people' themselves. Although ancient Greece had a direct kind of public democratic participation, crucial government choices were made by a much smaller group of 'citizens' who had unique rights not granted to the rest of the population.

At different eras and in different societies, democratic rule has assumed various shapes. Not least because the meaning of "the people" has evolved throughout time and space. The concept of 'the people' has been limited to adult men, just those who possessed property, and male and female adults—but only those above a particular age—at various times. Representative democracy, in which citizens elect representatives to act on their behalf, has become the standard means of obtaining "rule of the people." Since the fall of communism in Eastern Europe in the 1990s, representative forms of 'liberal' democracy have been the dominant paradigm all over the world.

Q10. Resistance 6

Ans) Hollander and Einwohne argue, based on a systematic literature review, that while there is agreement that resistance includes a sense of action and opposition, lines of disagreement resolve around the concepts of recognition (whether an oppositional action must be readily apparent to others and recognised as resistance) and intentionality (whether an actor must be conscious that she or he is resisting). Resistance, according to Danny Trom and Daniel Cefai, encompasses the dimensions of habit, imagination, and judgement. It is devoid of any collective and public action, as well as any evident social dissatisfaction. Resistance, which is infrapolitical, implies a desire to elude a power, a prevailing norm, or societal control. It operates in the backdrop of day-to-day activities. Trickery, concealment, cleverness, double meaning, humour, pretended ignorance, labour to rule, and absenteeism are some of the ways it manifests itself. It comes with all of the conflict dynamics.