WHAT IS UNDERSTANDING CULTURE,

SOCIETY AND POLITICS?

• It is a multidisciplinary insights from anthropology, political sciences and sociology to
develop awareness of cultural, social and political dynamics and sensitivity to cultural
diversity.
• It can enlighten our minds to the critical issues and concepts
• (e.g.. Dictatorship, orientation, voting behavior, elections, public policy, conflict change,
foreign policy and world policy.
• You have always been fascinated by the lives of the great scientist who contributed to the knowledge of the
natural world:
• Galileo Galilei – telescope
• Nicolas Copernicus – popularized viewed that the sun is the center of the solar system
• Isaac Newton – who discovered the gravity
• Charles Darwin – theory of evolution
• Albert Einstein – developed the theory about “Big Bang”
But you have not yet encountered the “Social Scientists” who contributed to our knowledge of how society,
culture and politics work which will give the theories and concepts, learning methods and procedures,
historical development, political foundations and diversity.
THE ORIGIN AND NATURE OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES:
ANTHROPOLOGY, SOCIOLOGY AND POLITICAL
SCIENCE
• ANTHROPOLOGY – systematic study of humanity or human history, our evolution,
distinctive species ( Australopithecus, homo habilis, homo erectus, homo neanderthalensis,
homo sapiens) and cultures which include the languages, belief systems, social structures
and institutions.
• SOCIOLOGY – the study of human social relationships and institutions on how
communication affects our human behavior. ( racial issues, gender, ethnicity, and social
movements)
• POLITICAL SCIENCE – study of the processes of government, public policies and
political behavior (as well as the behavior of the people in the government)
THE BIRTH AND
GROWTH OF THE
SOCIAL SCIENCES
THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE
GROWTH OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
• Social Sciences were last to develop after the natural sciences which is traced by the
Ancient Greek Philosophers Socrates, Plato, Aristotle their development as separate
fields of knowledge only begun in the modern period
• Before the birth of Modern Social Science in the West, society, culture and politics were
based on theological reasoning grounded in the Revelation on the Bible. Largely
dominance of religious worldview
• Philosophy is distinct with science, because it is based on analytic understanding of the
nature of truth about specific topics of issues.
• Growth of science was slowed down because of the dominance of religious authority and
tradition.
• However, when the breakdown of the Church revolution and its religious power after the
French Revolution, the sciences grew steadily and rapidly to become the most widely
accepted way of explaining the world, nature and human being.
• This developmental of the social science during modern period was made possible by
several large scale and pivotal events.
• Science (Pure science, applied science, social science)
• Humanities (Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Religion) (Law, linguistics, History)
THE UNPRECEDENTED GROWTH OF SCIENCE

• The scientific revolution which begun with Nicolaus Copernicus refers to historical
changes in thought and belief.
• In Europe roughly between 1550 and 1700 with the works of Sir Isaac Newton, which
proposed universal laws of motion and mechanical model of the universe.
• Francis Bacon, who established the supremacy of reason over imagination
• Rene Descartes and Sir Isaac Newton laid the foundation that allowed science and
technology to change the world.
 THE SECULARIZATION OF LEARNING AND
EDUCATION
• The Modern period marked the growing triumph of scientific method over religious dogma and
theological thinking.
• The Protestant movement led by Martin Luther eroded the power of the Roman Catholic Church.
• Then there was an “Enlightenment” (he defined as the courage to know) it is about the “Existence
of God”. Emphasizing reason and individualism rather than tradition.
• Enlightenment is man’s release from his self-uncured tutelage. Tutelage is man’s inability to make
use of his understanding without direction from another.
• “Have courage to use your own reason” that is the motto of Enlightenment.
 MEDIEVAL PERIOD

• During the Medieval Period, universities relied mainly on religious

tradition and the bible to explain the nature of the universe and the place of
human being in the grand scheme of things, the modern universities started
to reply on science and its method to interpret the world.
• Max Weber, one of the leading figures in modern sociology, described this
process as rationalization.
 RATIONALIZATION

• Rationalization or rationalisation (also known as making excuses) is a

defense mechanism in which controversial behaviors or feelings are
justified and explained in a seemingly rational or logical manner to avoid
and the true explanation, and are made consciously tolerable – or even
admirable and superior by plausible means.
THE RISE OF UNIVERSITIES

• Education is the single most important factor in the rise of social sciences. The growth of
universities also contributed to the triumph of science. Where in they separated the
secular subjects or subjects dealing with natural world.
• Because they believe that secular learning became the hub of training future scientists,
technocrats and technological innovators.
• Durkheim one of the founder of “Fathers” of sociology lectured that secularization is base
on the curriculum on the need of nation-state to develop citizens for the modern world.
• This created the modern cities. This development forced many social scientists
during this time to study the effects of dissolution of feudal relations on the
social life of the people.
• Whereas in traditional communities people had warm relationship with the
members of the community, in modern cities or “gessellschaft” individualism
gave way to cold and calculated social relationships. Because they focused on
economic instructions rather than as a form of personal relationship.
LIVRES DES MERVEILLES DU MONDE

• This is the recorded book who introduced and it is about the Travels of Marco Polo.
• Marco Polo is an Italian Merchant from Venice.
• They travel places whose existence. So that later on 18 th century.
• Anthropogists also began to compare the differences between rural life and city life.
SOCIOLOGISTS

• the study of human social relationships and institutions on how communication affects
our human behavior. ( racial issues, gender, ethnicity, and social movements)
KARL MARX

• “FATHER OF SCIENTIFIC SOCIALISM”

• Main Ideas of Marxism
KEY IDEAS OF MARXISM

• Individuals have sold their capacity to make other people money-generating capital or
wealth – by working in a job. This is an unfair relationship as their employers make more
money from it than they do.
• The people seek in power to maintain this relationship because it means they have a way
of controlling everyone.
EMILE DURKHEIM

• The pioneer of functionalism in sociology

• Functionalism – to describe and understand people and society. He believed that all the
different parts of society were important.
• Collective Conscience which identifies the communal beliefs and morals
• Social Integration – strength of the ties people have to the social groups they part of.
MAX WEBER

• The pioneer of interpretive sociology

• Bureaucracy is a social system that relies on a set of rules and procedure, separation of
functions and a hierarchical structure in implementing controls over an organization,
government or social system.
• It is designed to ensure efficiency and economic effectiveness.
SIX PRINCIPLES OF MAX WEBER BUREAUCRACY

Career Division of
Orientation Labor

Authority Formal
Hierarchy
Selection

Formal
Rules and Impersonality
Regulation
s
FILIPINO SOCIOLOGIST
DR. ZEUS SALAZAR

• Father of Pantayong Pananaw

• Salazar used “tayo” as basis for the theoretical base of the perspective.
• It refers to “we speaking to others”
FRANZ BOAS

• Father of American Anthropology

• Historical Particularism
ANTHROPOLOGISTS
BRONISLAW KASPER MALINOWSKI

• He is an anthropogists an ethnographer
• Participant Observation – ability to participate and blend with the way of life of given
group of people.
ALFRED REGINALD RADCLIFFE-BROWN

• Was an English social anthropologists who developed the theory of structural

functionalism.
• He established of structural-functionalist paradigm
• To maintain the equilibrium of society.
POLITICAL SCIENCE

• Deals with the study of politics, power and government.

• The process of making collective decisions decision in a community, society or group
through the application of influence and power.
• Political science is also about the most private and personal decisions of an individual.
WATER LIPPMANN

• Was a newspaper commentator and respected world news columnist

• He focused on the ideas about formation of public opinion developed: using terms like:
pictures inside our heads, fictions and symbols and stereotypes (view or represent)
• This was also the beginning of liberal tradition in political science which embodied
democracy.
PROSPERO COVAR

• He says that clamor (sigaw) or ingay for indigenization was done through sikolohiyang
Pilipino (Filipino Psychology) the beginning of UP Community Development Research
• Western concepts, theories and research tools and indigenous cultural forms.
• SP – refers to the psychology borne out the experience, thought an orientation of
Filipinos based on the full use of Filipino culture and language.
CAROLYN SOBRITCHEA

• Argued that the strategies for collecting information as suggested by SP are very useful
for doing feminist ethnography in the Philippine context such as PAGMAMASAID,
PAKIKIRAMDAM,PAKIKILAHOK, PAGTATANONG-TANONG,
PAKIKIPAGKWENTUHAN, at SAMA-SAMANG TALAKAYAN.
• This is based on Filipino indigenous ways of knowing from within and from without.