SOCY 261 Sociology of Knowledge

Explores three main issues: the social determination of knowledge, including natural science; the character of intellectual labor and intellectuals as a social group; the role of organized knowledge and knowledge industries in contemporary social change. Texts examined include class-based theories (Lukacs, Mannheim, Gramsci), feminist standpoint analysis (Smith, Harding, etc.), and theories of postmodern culture (Lyotard, Harvey, etc.).