Sociology Theory marked
essays:
●Postmodernism 10/10
●Feminism 10/10
●Marxism 20/20
●Postmodernism 20/20
, Outline and explain 2 arguments for the view that theories developed in modern society
are no longer relevant for understanding society today (10 marks)
One reason modernist theories are no longer relevant is because metanarratives no longer apply
in modern society. Modernist theories proposed metanarratives, claiming they have the absolute
truth and understanding of how society works and how we are affected by it, for example radical
feminists argued that all of society is engineered to serve the interests of patriarchy, and
Marxists argue all of society is determined by the ‘superstructure’ - the economic base of
capitalism. However, postmodernists argue that these metanarratives are no longer possible as
they have often been disproved - for example, the USSR was based on Marxist principles but
instead of bringing a classless utopia, it brought exploitation and brutality. Furthermore,
because there are so many metanarratives (e.g. Marxism, Feminism, Functionalism) all with
competing definitions of the truth, all of them lose their meaning as they become less
believable. Society is now much more diverse, and increasingly globalised, meaning
metanarratives are no longer applicable because they cannot account for this increasing
diversity. For example, it would undermine the Functionalist idea that society is maintained by
value consensus formed from a collective conscience. As modernist theories are based on
metanarratives, they are no longer applicable to society today. However we can criticise this
postmodernist theory as if no theory can hold the absolute truth of society and is just an
interpretation of it, then this view too is simply another interpretation and there is no reason to
accept it.
Another reason modernist theories are no longer relevant is because according to Beck and
Giddens we have entered a stage of ‘late modernity’ which is based on freedom and choice. In
the past, our lives were governed by social narratives and structures such as the class structure
that predetermined our roles, but in late modern society we have become ‘disembedded’ from
these structures and are free to make our own decisions about our lives and roles based on
calculations of what is in our own self-interest (the ‘individualisation thesis’). This means
modernist theories are no longer relevant as they are based on highly deterministic principles
that our lives and actions are governed by social structures, and we have no choice but to follow
them, but this is not true in today’s late modern society as we have the freedom to reject them.
For example, Marxist Bowles and Gintis argued that students passively accepted indoctrination
by the school system, but Beck and Giddens would argue that students now have the freedom
to reject this indoctrination, so modernist theories are no longer applicable due to their
determinism. But, this may overestimate the amount of freedom we have; for example May
argued that Beck and Giddens view is from the “idealised, white, middle-class man” and so
overestimates the amount of freedom we have, when for many minority groups they are still
bound to social structures, so modernist theories may still have some relevance.
essays:
●Postmodernism 10/10
●Feminism 10/10
●Marxism 20/20
●Postmodernism 20/20
, Outline and explain 2 arguments for the view that theories developed in modern society
are no longer relevant for understanding society today (10 marks)
One reason modernist theories are no longer relevant is because metanarratives no longer apply
in modern society. Modernist theories proposed metanarratives, claiming they have the absolute
truth and understanding of how society works and how we are affected by it, for example radical
feminists argued that all of society is engineered to serve the interests of patriarchy, and
Marxists argue all of society is determined by the ‘superstructure’ - the economic base of
capitalism. However, postmodernists argue that these metanarratives are no longer possible as
they have often been disproved - for example, the USSR was based on Marxist principles but
instead of bringing a classless utopia, it brought exploitation and brutality. Furthermore,
because there are so many metanarratives (e.g. Marxism, Feminism, Functionalism) all with
competing definitions of the truth, all of them lose their meaning as they become less
believable. Society is now much more diverse, and increasingly globalised, meaning
metanarratives are no longer applicable because they cannot account for this increasing
diversity. For example, it would undermine the Functionalist idea that society is maintained by
value consensus formed from a collective conscience. As modernist theories are based on
metanarratives, they are no longer applicable to society today. However we can criticise this
postmodernist theory as if no theory can hold the absolute truth of society and is just an
interpretation of it, then this view too is simply another interpretation and there is no reason to
accept it.
Another reason modernist theories are no longer relevant is because according to Beck and
Giddens we have entered a stage of ‘late modernity’ which is based on freedom and choice. In
the past, our lives were governed by social narratives and structures such as the class structure
that predetermined our roles, but in late modern society we have become ‘disembedded’ from
these structures and are free to make our own decisions about our lives and roles based on
calculations of what is in our own self-interest (the ‘individualisation thesis’). This means
modernist theories are no longer relevant as they are based on highly deterministic principles
that our lives and actions are governed by social structures, and we have no choice but to follow
them, but this is not true in today’s late modern society as we have the freedom to reject them.
For example, Marxist Bowles and Gintis argued that students passively accepted indoctrination
by the school system, but Beck and Giddens would argue that students now have the freedom
to reject this indoctrination, so modernist theories are no longer applicable due to their
determinism. But, this may overestimate the amount of freedom we have; for example May
argued that Beck and Giddens view is from the “idealised, white, middle-class man” and so
overestimates the amount of freedom we have, when for many minority groups they are still
bound to social structures, so modernist theories may still have some relevance.
