Lecture Notes: Chapter 13: Society, Self, and Mind: Cooley, Mead, and Freud

A. The authors open this chapter with a point that I have to agree with:
"When sociology teachers complain that they are having trouble getting their students to think sociologically, they usually mean getting them to think about society as a whole. In the United States we are more attuned to individual-level explanations." (p. 310)

1. And Cooley, Mead and Freud certainly provide insight into the individual-level (or group-level) interaction, although I would insist that they were also aware of that larger social environment which plays a role in the development of individuals.

Charles Horton Cooley (1864-1929)

A. He grew up, was educated, and taught at the University of Michigan. In 1918 he became President of the American Sociological Society. His work helped lay the foundation for social psychology and symbolic interactionism.

1. Cooley was influenced by Spencer but did not agree with his more wholistic, organismic analogy. He argued that Spencer did not appreciate the significance of individual interaction.

B. "Sociological concepts, for Cooley, must be anchored in the real social world of interacting individuals." (p. 312) At one point, the authors describe Cooley's understanding of social life as "mentalistic."

C. Three key concepts/contributions for Cooley.

1. "Looking-glass self" -- That is, our sense of who we are is developed in reference to others. You understand yourself, who you are, in terms of your understanding of what others think or imagine you to be.

2. How people choose to define you, look upon you -- as a criminal, nerd, star, etc. -- will likely determine your identity. Creates what is called a "self-fulfilling prophecy," a concept that is especially relevant in terms of racial identity and stereotyping. (Even though it is not until we get to Merton in Chap. 14 that the authors talk about this concept of the self-fulfilling prophecy.)

3. And these individual interactions usually take place in "primary groups," or groups "characterized by intimate, face-to-face association and cooperation." (p. 313) And note what Cooley goes on to say about the fundamental role of the primary group (bottom, p. 313). Then, in the next paragraph at the top of p. 314, the authors draw a very important implication from this: "If primary groups are critical to human social and moral development, and to solidarity with others, then any threat to an individual's contact with significant primary groups (such as the family) will result in problems for individuals and society. Thus, it is very important that the child not be deprived of consistent, long-term contacts in early years." (p. 314)


George Herbert Mead (1863-1931)

A. Although there are several references to it, there is no direct mention of his major work which is his main claim to fame in sociology, "Mind, Self, and Society," published 3 years after his death in 1934, and it really was put together from notes taken by his graduate students.

B. Mead himself was a philosopher and two of his most important influences were pragmatist philosopher, William James (also an influence on Cooley) and German psychologist, Wilhelm Wundt, from which Mead came to appreciate the role of gestures, sympbols, signs in human communication and interaction.

C. The authors do a good job of presenting a very basic aspect of Mead's thought, which is crucial to the later development of symbolic interactionism: that is his view of personality development being socially determined, involving three distinct stages which all hinge on the concept of "ROLE-TAKING." (which the authors do not define as such)

1. Those three stages being: PLAY, GAME, and "GENERALIZED OTHER," generalized other being the most significant. It represents the culmination of this process of self-development through role taking (or taking the role of the other and seeing yourself from the other's point of view). This represents the "synthesized view" of others' attitudes and expectations built up over a long period of time. Primary group interactions especially. I've always thought of the "generalized other" as similar to the conscience or Freud's "SUPER-EGO." (See, p. 322)

D. The authors go on to note that because of Mead's emphasis on mind and self, we tend to overlook his views on the nature of society. Mind and self only develop in the context of society, society itself being basically an outgrowth of individuals interacting. It was Mead's student, Herbert Blumer, in a seminal essay, "Society as Symbolic Interaction," (1937) who develops some of the societal implications of this theory of personality development.


Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

A. Without getting into the real nitty-gritty of psychoanalysis and the explanation it offers for various psychological disorders, I believe it is important to have a general overview of the Freudian view of the personality structure or psyche, and the sociological implications of that view for the relation of the individual and society (or civilization). This sociological dimension comes through in his book, "Civilization and Its Discontents" (1930).

B. I defer to the authors' succinct overview of the three elements of the personality structure -- the ID, SUPER-EGO, and EGO. See this section, bottom p. 330 - 331.

C. In terms of the impact of civilization, Freud saw it as coercive, controlling our basic instinctual drives -- EROS - sexual; THANATOS - aggressive or death instinct. In the end, civilization is something that makes us sick or unhappy in that it necessarily represses these instinctual drives. This basic point is well-captured by the authors, see middle paragraph, p. 332.

"Freud and the Fundamentalist Urge"

A. This recent commentary brings out some of Freud's insights into culture and politics, which reflect his thinking during the last phase of his life.

B. The commentary also includes another overview of the Freudian view of the psyche. See second page, middle of the first column.

1. Freud argued that we deal with the inevitable conflict in the psyche in various ways -- intoxication, romantic love.

2. Notes how the tyrant has an erotic relationship to the crowd. The tyrant takes the place of the "over-I" or superego in the psyche of followers. People's yearning for a simple, clear direction from the superego leads them to embrace the tyrant. Nice description of such a tyrant and what he provides for the people, see top, p. 3.

3. In a sense, Freud saw a middle way (between tyranny and anarchy), a path that acknowledges the need to live and deal with tension and conflict which really describes the job of the ego, and which is preferable. In this regard, we should be suspicious of "feel-good-politics."

C. The author of this commentary concludes by applying this insight to the so-called "war on terror" -- the danger of fighting fundamentalist terrorists by embracing fundamentalism ourselves and turning a blind eye to the shortcomings of our leaders. See last paragraph of the commentary, p. 3.
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That brings us up to the Introduction to Section VII and Chapter 14.