Open AccessIntellectuals’ Political Orientations: Toward an Analytical Sociology
Author(s) -
Jun Li
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
asian social science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1911-2025
pISSN - 1911-2017
DOI - 10.5539/ass.v6n12p3
Subject(s) - politics , sociology , field (mathematics) , consciousness , variable (mathematics) , class (philosophy) , epistemology , social science , class consciousness , political science , law , philosophy , mathematical analysis , mathematics , pure mathematics
This article surveys the field of the sociology of intellectuals, and calls for a move toward an analytical sociology. The topics covered include the definitions of intellectuals, the debates on whether intellectuals constitute a universal class, and the role of intellectuals in the society, in particular intellectuals’ involvement in politics. The article then moves on to the literature on intellectuals’ political consciousness, and makes a call for a shift from a moralistic mission to an analytical approach, while suggesting a shift of the intellectual from an “independent variable” to a “dependent variable.”