The Society and People: A Sociological Enquiry from Classical to Modern Perspectives
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Abstract
This paper explores the evolving relationship between society and people across historical epochs, theoretical frameworks, institutional structures, and contemporary challenges. Drawing on classical sociology (Durkheim, Weber, Marx), modern perspectives (intersectionality, post-structuralism, digital sociology), and comparative case studies (India, Europe, United States), it argues that society and people are mutually constitutive forces. Society provides the structures—family, education, religion, economy, and state—that organize collective life, while people embody agency, creativity, and resistance, continually reshaping those structures. Historical analysis traces the shift from kinship-based communities to industrial and globalized societies, while contemporary challenges such as globalization, digital technologies, climate change, and identity politics highlight the complexity of this interplay. Case studies illustrate how diverse contexts negotiate tradition, diversity, and inequality, underscoring the importance of intersectional perspectives and thick description. The conclusion synthesizes these findings, projecting future trajectories in which society and people must navigate global crises, technological transformations, and struggles for justice. Ultimately, the paper demonstrates that to study society and people is to study the very fabric of human existence, in all its complexity and dynamism.
Keywords; Society, Structure, Agency, Globalization Intersectionality, Digital sociology
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