But sociologists in the classical period itself did not have this origin story. The story consists of a foundational moment arising from the internal transformation of European society classic discipline-defining texts written by a small group of brilliant authors and a direct line of descent from them to us. This particular canon embeds an internalist doctrine of sociology's history as a social science. The idea of classical theory embodies a canon, in the sense of literary theory: a privileged set of texts, whose interpretation and reinterpretation defines a field (Seidman 1994). In the new century, commentary on classical texts remains a significant genre of theoretical writing (Baehr 2002). Twenty years ago, a star-studded review of Social Theory Today began with a ringing declaration of 'the centrality of the classics' (Alexander 1987). Sociologists take this account of their origins seriously. This well-regarded British text presents a two-part narrative of 'Foundations: Classical Sociology' (centring on Durkheim, Weber and Marx), and 'Modern Sociology', tied together by the belief that 'Marx, Weber and Durkheim have remained at the core of modern sociology' (2000: x). This curriculum is backed by histories such as Alan Swingewood's (2000) Short History of Sociological Thought. In the view normally presented to students, these men created sociology in response to dramatic changes in European society: the Industrial Revolution, class conflict, secularisation, alienation and the modern state. The first chapter may also cite Comte, Spencer, Tönnies and Simmel, and perhaps a few others. From Chapter 1: Empire and the creation of a social science Origin stories Open any introductory sociology textbook and you will probably find, in the first few pages, a discussion of founding fathers focused on Marx, Durkheim and Weber.
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