Ideological aspects of the sociological study of race

Anthias, Floya (1973). Ideological aspects of the sociological study of race. University of Birmingham. M.Soc.Sc.

Anthias1973MSocSc_09134840_17898.pdf Text - Accepted Version Available under License All rights reserved. Download (1MB)

Abstract

This paper deals with the role of 'ideology' in the sociological study of race. The use of the concept within sociology is discussed and the pejorative definition of ideology, which views it as distorting or limiting the understanding of. reality, is found to be inadequate. It is argued that 'ideology' cannot be seen as strictly separated from 'valid knowledge' and tentatively suggested that it may contribute, to some extent, to 'knowledge discovery'. The ideological elements contained in definitions of 'race' are discussed briefly, and various sociological theories of race relations are presented, under the headings of Mainstream and Marxist sociology, in order to partially explicate their ideological contents. Ideology is found to be ubiquitous in the sociological study of race, and within Mainstream sociology to legitimise the status quo, and within Marxist sociology to denounce it. Trie concluding chapter discusses a possible reformulation of the 'problem of ideology' and the possibility that different sociological approaches, with their respective ideologies, all contribute some insights into understanding race relations. Certain suggestions are also made concerning ways of assessing the relative contributions of Mainstream and Marxist sociology in this area.

Type of Work:	Thesis (Masters by Research > M.Soc.Sc.)
Award Type:	Masters by Research > M.Soc.Sc.
Licence:	All rights reserved
College/Faculty:	Faculties (to 1997) > Faculty of Commerce and Social Sciences
School or Department:	Faculty of Commerce and Social Sciences
Funders:	None/not applicable
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
URI:	http://etheses.bham.ac.uk/id/eprint/17898

Actions

	Request a Correction
	View Item

Downloads