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Sociology and Society – Class 11 Sociology notes, important questions and MCQs

NCERT Class 11 Sociology, chapter 1. Notes, key terms, important questions with answers and MCQs.

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Chapter overview

Sociology is the systematic study of society, social relationships and social institutions. It emerged in Europe in the nineteenth century after the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution and the French Revolution changed society deeply. Sociology helps us see the link between personal troubles and public issues, an idea called the sociological imagination. In India, sociology developed under colonial rule and focused on caste, village, tribe and family.

What sociology studies

  • Sociology studies groups, institutions, interactions and social change in a systematic and scientific way, unlike common-sense explanations.
  • C. Wright Mills described the sociological imagination as the ability to connect individual experiences with larger social forces.
  • Societies differ by class, caste, gender, region and religion, and sociology studies these differences and inequalities.

Origin and relation to other sciences

  • The Enlightenment emphasised reason, the Industrial Revolution created new classes and cities, and the French Revolution spread ideas of liberty and equality; Auguste Comte coined the term 'sociology'.
  • Sociology is related to economics, political science, history, psychology and social anthropology but focuses on social relationships and institutions as a whole.
  • In India, colonial administrators and later Indian scholars studied caste, tribe and village; sociology grew as a university subject after independence.

Key terms

Sociology
the systematic study of society and social relationships
Sociological imagination
the ability to see links between personal life and wider society
Social institution
an established pattern of behaviour such as family or education
Enlightenment
the eighteenth-century movement emphasising reason and science
Common sense
everyday explanations based on unexamined assumptions

Important questions with answers

What is the sociological imagination?2 marks

The sociological imagination, a term given by C. Wright Mills, is the ability to see the connection between an individual's personal experiences (private troubles) and the larger social forces and structures (public issues) that shape them.

How is sociology different from common sense?3 marks

Common sense is based on everyday beliefs and assumptions that are often unexamined and may be biased. Sociology studies society systematically, asks questions, collects evidence, uses methods and theories, and is willing to question accepted ideas.

Explain the origin and development of sociology.5 marks

Sociology emerged in nineteenth-century Europe in response to major changes. The Enlightenment of the eighteenth century emphasised reason, science and the individual, encouraging people to study society scientifically. The French Revolution of 1789 spread ideas of liberty, equality and citizenship and challenged old feudal and religious authority. The Industrial Revolution transformed production through factories and machines, created a new working class and capitalist class, encouraged migration to crowded cities, and changed family life and work discipline. These changes raised new questions about order, inequality and change, and thinkers such as Auguste Comte, who coined the term 'sociology', Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and Max Weber tried to understand them. In India, sociology developed under colonial rule, when administrators collected information on caste, tribe and religion through censuses and surveys, and later Indian scholars such as G. S. Ghurye, D. P. Mukerji, A. R. Desai and M. N. Srinivas studied Indian society. After independence, sociology became a university discipline studying caste, village, family, tribe, development and change. Today sociology helps people understand society and their place in it.

Quick revision

  • Sociology: systematic study of society.
  • Sociological imagination: personal troubles and public issues.
  • Origins: Enlightenment, Industrial and French Revolutions.
  • Relation with other social sciences; sociology in India.

Exam tips

  • Remember: Auguste Comte coined 'sociology'; C. Wright Mills gave 'sociological imagination'.
  • Compare sociology with economics and psychology in a table.

Practice MCQs

  1. The term 'sociology' was coined by

    1. Karl Marx
    2. Auguste Comte
    3. Max Weber
    4. Emile Durkheim
    Show answer

    Answer: (b) Auguste Comte. He is called the father of sociology.

  2. Sociology is the systematic study of

    1. society and social relationships
    2. rocks
    3. plants
    4. stars
    Show answer

    Answer: (a) society and social relationships. It uses scientific methods.

  3. The 'sociological imagination' was described by

    1. Plato
    2. Herbert Spencer
    3. G. S. Ghurye
    4. C. Wright Mills
    Show answer

    Answer: (d) C. Wright Mills. It links personal and public issues.

  4. Which revolution created factories, new classes and big cities

    1. French Revolution
    2. Russian Revolution
    3. Industrial Revolution
    4. Green Revolution
    Show answer

    Answer: (c) Industrial Revolution. It transformed work and life.

  5. How does sociology differ from common sense

    1. it accepts all beliefs
    2. it ignores facts
    3. it tests explanations systematically with evidence
    4. it relies only on tradition
    Show answer

    Answer: (c) it tests explanations systematically with evidence. It questions assumptions.

  6. Sociology developed in Europe mainly in the

    1. fifteenth century
    2. nineteenth century
    3. twenty-first century
    4. tenth century
    Show answer

    Answer: (b) nineteenth century. It followed great social changes.

  7. Unemployment of many people in a city is best understood sociologically as

    1. only individual laziness
    2. a public issue linked to economic and social structures
    3. a natural event
    4. a personal secret
    Show answer

    Answer: (b) a public issue linked to economic and social structures. Mills linked private troubles with public issues.

  8. Sociology differs from economics mainly because it

    1. studies only prices
    2. studies only individuals' minds
    3. avoids data
    4. studies social relationships and institutions as a whole, including non-economic factors
    Show answer

    Answer: (d) studies social relationships and institutions as a whole, including non-economic factors. It takes a broader view of behaviour.

All chapters of Class 11 Sociology

Written by Kundali IQ from standard, well-established facts to help with revision. This is not an official NCERT publication; always read your textbook too.