La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France

Joined uses of history and sociology in France have led to misunderstandings. Focusing on the works of Georges Duby and Roland Mousnier, I show that a certain vision of sociology is to blame. Presented as a theory of modernity, it assumes the primitive simplicity of the past, pictures society as a c...

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Main Author: Thierry Dutour
Format: Article
Language:fra
Published: ENS Éditions 2008-11-01
Series:Tracés
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/traces/643
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author Thierry Dutour
author_facet Thierry Dutour
author_sort Thierry Dutour
collection DOAJ
description Joined uses of history and sociology in France have led to misunderstandings. Focusing on the works of Georges Duby and Roland Mousnier, I show that a certain vision of sociology is to blame. Presented as a theory of modernity, it assumes the primitive simplicity of the past, pictures society as a coherent whole and social agents as products shaped by a system. The use of sociology by historians then results in a functionalist, evolutionist and, often, determinist, view of society. On the other hand, refusing to believe in a necessary evolution towards “modern” societies exposes a degree of social complexity that cannot be reduced to arbitrary simplifications. This refusal can help us combine history and sociology around a study of complexity, provided we posit that change is the normal state of any society. Pragmatism and interactionist approaches prove essential when rethinking social links from that perspective.
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spelling doaj.art-7fac03c09e9c4a32822ce143bc8584fb2024-02-13T14:05:10ZfraENS ÉditionsTracés1763-00611963-18122008-11-0115678410.4000/traces.643La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en FranceThierry DutourJoined uses of history and sociology in France have led to misunderstandings. Focusing on the works of Georges Duby and Roland Mousnier, I show that a certain vision of sociology is to blame. Presented as a theory of modernity, it assumes the primitive simplicity of the past, pictures society as a coherent whole and social agents as products shaped by a system. The use of sociology by historians then results in a functionalist, evolutionist and, often, determinist, view of society. On the other hand, refusing to believe in a necessary evolution towards “modern” societies exposes a degree of social complexity that cannot be reduced to arbitrary simplifications. This refusal can help us combine history and sociology around a study of complexity, provided we posit that change is the normal state of any society. Pragmatism and interactionist approaches prove essential when rethinking social links from that perspective.https://journals.openedition.org/traces/643pragmatismmodernitycomplexityDuby (Georges)Mousnier (Roland)
spellingShingle Thierry Dutour
La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
Tracés
pragmatism
modernity
complexity
Duby (Georges)
Mousnier (Roland)
title La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
title_full La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
title_fullStr La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
title_full_unstemmed La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
title_short La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
title_sort la fecondite d un tournant critique malentendus anciens et tendances recentes dans les usages croises de l histoire et de la sociologie en france
topic pragmatism
modernity
complexity
Duby (Georges)
Mousnier (Roland)
url https://journals.openedition.org/traces/643
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