About the Book
The author asks relevant questions about the nature of theoretical frameworks and methodological devices in regard to sociology in India. Sociologists in India have not stated explicitly about the relevance of their research activities. Why a particular framework has been preferred over some other ones remains an unanswered question. Why a particular set of hypotheses and certain methodological strategies also remain unstated. What is the ‘fit’ between a given theoretical framework and a particular research design? Questions regarding the philosophical and ontological foundations of theory and method of study have remained quite vague. The author deals with these and similar other questions related to the historicity and present state of sociology in India.
A perspective from sociology of knowledge calls for a thorough analysis of theoretical and methodological aspects of sociological researches in India. The parameters of sociology of knowledge, namely, epistemology, philosophy, theory, methodology and field of study have been examined in the context of sociology in India. The attempts towards ideologizing and indigenization of Indian sociology have also been discussed vis-á-vis the role of positivist and idealist traditions.
Studies of village community and social stratification have been taken as test cases for examining the nexus between theory, method and data from the point of sociology of knowledge. The evolution of the debate on sociology in India has been examined in entirety.
The ‘new introduction’ by K.L. Sharma in the second edition attempts to sum up the recent developments in the discipline in the last three decades.
Contents
1. Introduction
2. New Introduction: Revisiting Indian Sociology - K.L. Sharma
3. Some Issues in the Sociology of Knowledge
4. Sociology in India: Historical and Theoretic Probings
5. Sociology in India: A Sociology of Knowledge Perspective
6. Studies on Social Stratification: A Sociology of Knowledge Perspective
7. Village Studies: Theoretical and Methodological Orientations
8. Conclusion
About the Author / Editor
Surendra Sharma a member of Indian Revenue Service (IRS), was an exceptionally brilliant scholar with in-depth understanding of the discipline of sociology. He had tremendous capacity to handle research materials. Prior to joining the IRS, Sharma was a Research Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi. The academic environment at JNU provided him ample opportunities to interact with eminent scholars from diverse fields in social sciences. This culminated in the formulation of an academic perspective which is reflective of this volume.
