The Birth of Sociology: From Religion to Science
Sociology emerged during the Enlightenment Project in the 18th century when people started believing that human reasoning and scientific thinking could solve society's problems. Instead of just accepting "that's how things are," scholars began asking "but why?"
Auguste Comte, known as the father of sociology, championed positivism - the idea that we should study society using the same scientific methods used in chemistry or physics. He believed that by identifying social laws, we could tackle issues like poverty and poor education systematically.
However, the postmodern era has challenged this optimism. With massive changes like globalisation and the digital revolution, some argue that traditional theories no longer explain our complex world. It's like trying to understand TikTok using rules written for newspapers!
Think About It: We've shifted from explaining the world through religion to science - what might come next?