There is a variety of approaches to defining the concept of “society” in the scientific literature, which emphasizes the abstract nature of this category, and when defining it in each specific case, it is necessary to proceed from the context in which this concept is used.

1) Natural (the influence of geographical and climatic conditions on the development of society).

2) Social (the reasons and starting points of social development are determined by society itself).

The combination of these factors predetermines social development.

There are different ways of developing society:

Evolutionary (gradual accumulation of changes and their naturally determined nature);

Revolutionary (characterized by relatively rapid change, subjectively directed on the basis of knowledge and action).

DIVERSITY OF PATHS AND FORMS OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Social progress in those created in the 18th-19th centuries. works of J. Condorcet, G. Hegel, K. Marx and other philosophers was understood as a natural movement along a single main path for all humanity. On the contrary, in the concept of local civilizations, progress is seen to occur in different civilizations in different ways.

If you take a mental look at the course of world history, you will notice many similarities in the development of different countries and peoples. Primitive society was everywhere replaced by a state-governed society. Feudal fragmentation was replaced by centralized monarchies. Bourgeois revolutions took place in many countries. Colonial empires collapsed and dozens of independent states emerged in their place. You yourself could continue listing similar events and processes that took place in different countries, on different continents. This similarity reveals the unity of the historical process, a certain identity of successive orders, the common destinies of different countries and peoples.

At the same time, the specific paths of development of individual countries and peoples are diverse. There are no peoples, countries, states with the same history. The diversity of concrete historical processes is caused by differences in natural conditions, the specifics of the economy, the uniqueness of spiritual culture, the peculiarities of the way of life, and many other factors. Does this mean that each country is predetermined by its own development option and that it is the only possible one? Historical experience shows that under certain conditions, various options for solving pressing problems are possible, a choice of methods, forms, and paths for further development is possible, i.e., a historical alternative. Alternative options are often offered by certain groups of society and various political forces.

Let us remember that in preparation Peasant reform, held in Russia in 1861, different social forces proposed different forms of implementing changes in the life of the country. Some defended the revolutionary path, others - the reformist one. But among the latter there was no unity. Several reform options were proposed.

And in 1917-1918. A new alternative arose before Russia: either a democratic republic, one of the symbols of which was a popularly elected Constituent Assembly, or a republic of Soviets led by the Bolsheviks.

In each case, a choice was made. This choice is made by statesmen, ruling elites, and the masses, depending on the balance of power and influence of each of the subjects of history.

Any country, any people at certain moments in history are faced with a fateful choice, and its history is carried out in the process of realizing this choice.

The variety of ways and forms of social development is unlimited. It is included within the framework of certain trends in historical development.

So, for example, we saw that the abolition of outdated serfdom was possible both in the form of a revolution and in the form of reforms carried out by the state. And the urgent need to accelerate economic growth in different countries was carried out either by attracting new and new natural resources, i.e. extensively, or by introducing new equipment and technology, improving the skills of workers, based on increased labor productivity, i.e. intensive way. In different countries or in the same country, different options for implementing the same type of changes may be used.

Thus, the historical process, in which general trends manifest themselves - the unity of diverse social development, creates the possibility of choice, on which the uniqueness of the paths and forms of further movement of a given country depends. This speaks to the historical responsibility of those who make this choice.

Main types (types) of social activities

So there are 4 element human activity: people, things, symbols, connections between them. Implementation of any type of joint activity of people without them is impossible.

Highlight 4 main type (type) of social activity:

Main types of social activities:

Material production;

Spiritual activity (production)

Regulatory activities

Social activity (in the narrow sense of the word)

1. Material production– creates practical means of activity that are used in all its types. Allows people physically transform natural and social reality. Everything necessary for everyday people's lives (housing, food, clothing, etc.).

However, we cannot talk about absolutization the role of material production in social activities. The role is constantly increasing information resources. IN post-industrial society is growing sharply the role of culture and science, transition from the production of goods to the service sector. Therefore, the role of material production will gradually decline.

2. Spiritual production (activity) – does not produce things, ideas, images, values ​​(paintings, books, etc.).

In the process of spiritual activity, a person learns about the world around him, its diversity and essence, develops a system of value concepts, determining the meaning (value) of certain phenomena.

“Mumu”, L. Tolstoy “Vanya and the plums”, sausage in the toilet.

His role is constantly growing.

3. Regulatory activities - the activities of administrators, managers, politicians.

It is aimed at ensuring consistency and orderliness in various spheres of public life.

4. Social activities (in the narrow sense of the word) – activities aimed at directly serving people. This is the activity of a doctor, a teacher, an artist, workers in the service sector, recreation, and tourism.

Creates conditions for maintaining the activity and life of people.

These four basic types of activity exist in any society and form basis spheres of public life.

Society as a dynamic system

Basic Concepts

Society is constantly changing, dynamic system.

Process(P. Sorokin) – yes any change to an object for a certain time

(whether it is a change in its place in space or a modification of its quantitative or qualitative characteristics).

Social process – sequential change in the state of society or its subsystems.

Types of social processes:

They differ:

1. By the nature of the changes:

A. Functioning of society - happening in society reversible changes related to everyday activities of society (with reproduction and maintaining it in a state of balance and stability).

B. Change –First stage internal rebirth in society or in its individual parts and their properties, bearing quantitative character.

B. Development –irreversible quality shifts resulting from gradual quantitative changes (see Hegel's law).

2. According to the degree of awareness of people:

A. Natural– not realized by people (riots).

B. Conscious – purposeful human activity.

3. By scale:

A. Global– covering all of humanity as a whole or a large group of societies (information revolution, computerization, Internet).

B. Local– affecting individual regions or countries.

B. Single- associated with specific groups of people.

4. By direction:

A. Progress– progressive development society from less perfect to more, increasing vitality, complication systemic organization.

B. Regression- movement of society along descending lines with simplification and, in the long term, with the destruction of the system.

Ticket No. 1

What is society?

There are many definitions of the concept “society”. In the narrow sense, by society can be understood as a certain group of people who have united to communicate and jointly perform some activity, or a specific stage in the historical development of a people or country.

In a broad sense, society- this is a part of the material world, isolated from nature, but closely connected with it, which consists of individuals with will and consciousness, and includes ways of interaction between people and forms of their unification.
In philosophical science characterizes society as a dynamic self-developing system, that is, a system that is capable of seriously changing and at the same time maintaining its essence and qualitative certainty. In this case, the system is defined as a complex of interacting elements. In turn, an element is some further indecomposable component of the system that is directly involved in its creation.
Signs of society:

• A collection of individuals gifted with will and consciousness.
• General interest of a permanent and objective nature. The organization of society depends on the harmonious combination of the general and individual interests of its members.
• Interaction and cooperation based on common interests. There must be an interest in each other, making it possible to realize the interests of everyone.
• Regulation of public interests through mandatory rules of conduct.
• The presence of an organized force (authority) capable of providing society with internal order and external security.

Each of these spheres, being itself an element of the system called “society”, in turn turns out to be a system in relation to the elements that compose it. All four spheres of social life are interconnected and mutually determine each other. The division of society into spheres is somewhat arbitrary, but it helps to isolate and study individual areas of a truly integral society, diverse and complex social life.

1. Politics and power

Power- the right and opportunity to influence other people, to subordinate them to your will. Power appeared with the emergence of human society and will always accompany its development in one form or another.

Sources of power:

• Violence (physical force, weapons, organized group, threat of force)
• Authority (family and social connections, deep knowledge in a certain area, etc.)
• Law (position and authority, control of resources, custom and tradition)

Subject of power- one who gives orders

Object of power- the one who performs.

To date researchers identify various public authorities:
depending on the prevailing resource, power is divided into political, economic, social, informational;
depending on the subjects of power, power is divided into state, military, party, trade union, family;
Depending on the methods of interaction between subjects and objects of power, they distinguish between dictatorial, totalitarian and democratic power.

Policy- the activities of social classes, parties, groups, determined by their interests and goals, as well as the activities of government bodies. Political struggle often means a struggle for power.

Highlight the following types of power:

• Legislative (parliament)
• Executive (government)
• Judicial (courts)
• Recently, the media has been characterized as the “fourth estate” (ownership of information)

Subjects of politics: individuals, social groups, classes, organizations, political parties, state

Policy objects: 1. internal (society as a whole, economy, social sphere, culture, national relations, ecology, personnel)

2. external (international relations, world community (global problems)

Policy functions: organizational base of society, controlling, communicative, integrative, educational

Types of policies:

1. according to the direction of political decisions - economic, social, national, cultural, religious, state-legal, youth

2. by scale of impact – local, regional, national (national), international, global (global problems)

3. according to the impact prospects - strategic (long-term), tactical (urgent tasks to achieve the strategy), opportunistic or current (urgent)

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Society as a complex dynamic system

Society– a complex dynamic self-developing system, which consists of subsystems (spheres of public life), of which four are usually distinguished:
1) economic (its elements are material production and relationships that arise between people in the process of production of material goods, their exchange and distribution);
2) social (consists of such structural formations as classes, social strata, nations, their relationships and interactions with each other);
3) political (includes politics, state, law, their relationship and functioning);
4) spiritual (covers various forms and levels of social consciousness, which in the real life of society form the phenomenon of spiritual culture).

Characteristic features (signs) of society as a dynamic system:

• dynamism (the ability to change over time both society and its individual elements).
• a complex of interacting elements (subsystems, social institutions).
• self-sufficiency (the ability of a system to independently create and recreate the conditions necessary for its own existence, to produce everything necessary for people’s lives).
• integration (interconnection of all system components).
• self-governance (response to changes in the natural environment and the global community).

Ticket number 3

1. Human nature

Until now, there is no clarity as to what the nature of man is, which determines his essence. Modern science recognizes the dual essence of man, a combination of biological and social.

From a biological point of view, humans belong to the class of mammals, the order of primates. Man is subject to the same biological laws as animals: he needs food, physical activity, and rest. A person grows, is susceptible to disease, grows old and dies.

The “animal” personality of a person is influenced by innate behavioral programs (instincts, unconditioned reflexes) and those acquired during life. This side of the personality is “responsible” for nutrition, preservation of life and health, and procreation.

Supporters of the theory of the origin of man from animals as a result of evolution
explain the peculiarities of human appearance and behavior by a long struggle for existence (2.5 million years), as a result of which the most fit individuals survived and left offspring.

The social essence of a person is formed under the influence of the social way of life and communication with others. Through communication, a person can convey to others what he is aware of and what he is thinking about. The means of communication between people in society is, first of all, language. There are cases where small children were raised by animals. Having entered human society as adults, they could not master articulate human speech. This may indicate that speech and the abstract thinking associated with it are formed only in society.

Social forms of behavior include a person’s ability to sympathize, care for the weak and those in need of help in society, self-sacrifice to save other people, the fight for truth, justice, etc.

The highest form of manifestation of the spiritual side of the human personality is love for one’s neighbor, which is not associated with material reward or public recognition.

Selfless love and altruism are the main conditions for spiritual growth and self-improvement. The spiritual personality, enriched in the process of communication, limits the egoism of the biological personality, and this is how moral improvement occurs.

Characterizing the social essence of a person, as a rule, they call: consciousness, speech, labor activity.

1. Socialization

Socialization – the process of mastering the knowledge and skills, modes of behavior necessary for a person to become a member of society, act correctly and interact with his social environment.

Socialization- the process by which the infant gradually develops into a self-aware, intelligent being who understands the essence of the culture into which he was born.

Socialization is divided into two types - primary and secondary.

Primary socialization concerns the immediate environment of a person and includes, first of all, family and friends, and secondary refers to the indirect, or formal, environment and consists of the influences of institutions and institutions. The role of primary socialization is great in the early stages of life, and secondary socialization in the later stages.

Highlight agents and institutions of socialization. Agents of Socialization- these are specific people responsible for teaching cultural norms and mastering social roles. Socialization institutions- social institutions that influence the process of socialization and guide it. Agents of primary socialization include parents, relatives, friends and peers, teachers and doctors. To secondary - officials of a university, enterprise, army, church, journalists, etc. Primary socialization is the sphere of interpersonal relationships, secondary - social. The functions of primary socialization agents are interchangeable and universal, while the functions of secondary socialization agents are non-interchangeable and specialized.

Along with socialization, it is also possible desocialization- loss or conscious rejection of learned values, norms, social roles (committing a crime, mental illness). Restoring lost values ​​and roles, retraining, returning to a normal lifestyle is called resocialization(this is the purpose of punishment as correction) - change and revision of ideas formed earlier.

Ticket No. 4

Economic systems

Economic systems- is a set of interrelated economic elements that form a certain integrity, the economic structure of society; the unity of relations arising regarding the production, distribution, exchange and consumption of economic goods.

Depending on the method of solving the main economic problems and the type of ownership of economic resources, four main types of economic systems can be distinguished:

• traditional;
• market (capitalism);
• command (socialism);
• mixed.

Ticket No. 5

Ticket number 6

Cognition and knowledge

In the Russian language dictionary S.I. Ozhegov gives two definitions of the concept knowledge:
1) comprehension of reality by consciousness;
2) a set of information and knowledge in some area.
Knowledge– this is a multi-aspect, practice-tested result that has been confirmed in a logical way, a process of learning about the world around us.
Several criteria of scientific knowledge can be named:
1) systematization of knowledge;
2) consistency of knowledge;
3) validity of knowledge.
Systematization of scientific knowledge means that all the accumulated experience of humanity leads (or should lead) to a certain strict system.
Consistency of scientific knowledge means that knowledge in various fields of science complements each other and does not exclude each other. This criterion directly follows from the previous one. The first criterion helps to a greater extent to eliminate the contradiction - a strict logical system of constructing knowledge will not allow several contradictory laws to exist simultaneously.
Validity of scientific knowledge. Scientific knowledge can be confirmed by repeating the same action over and over again (i.e., empirically). The substantiation of scientific concepts occurs by referring to data from empirical research or by referring to the ability to describe and predict phenomena (in other words, relying on intuition).

Cognition- this is the process of acquiring knowledge through empirical or sensory research, as well as comprehension of the laws of the objective world and the body of knowledge in some branch of science or art.
The following are distinguished types of knowledge:
1) everyday knowledge;
2) artistic knowledge;
3) sensory cognition;
4) empirical knowledge.
Everyday knowledge is experience accumulated over many centuries. It lies in observation and ingenuity. This knowledge, no doubt, is acquired only as a result of practice.
Artistic knowledge. The specificity of artistic cognition lies in the fact that it is built on a visual image, displaying the world and a person in a holistic state.
Sensory cognition is what we perceive through our senses (e.g., I hear my cell phone ringing, I see a red apple, etc.).
The main difference between sensory knowledge and empirical knowledge is that empirical knowledge is carried out through observation or experiment. When conducting an experiment, a computer or other device is used.
Methods of cognition:
1) induction;
2) deduction;
3) analysis;
4) synthesis.
Induction is a conclusion made on the basis of two or more premises. Induction can lead to either a correct or an incorrect conclusion.
Deduction is a transition made from the general to the specific. The method of deduction, unlike the method of induction, always leads to true conclusions.
Analysis is the division of the studied object or phenomenon into parts and components.
Synthesis is a process opposite to analysis, i.e. connecting parts of an object or phenomenon into a single whole.

Ticket number 7

Legal liability

Legal liability- this is the way in which the interests of the individual, society and state receive real protection . Legal liability means the application to the offender of sanctions of legal norms, specified in them, certain penalties. This is the imposition of state coercive measures on the offender, the application of legal sanctions for an offense. Such responsibility represents a unique relationship between the state and the offender, where the state, represented by its law enforcement agencies, has the right to punish the offender, restore the broken rule of law, and the offender is called upon to be convicted, i.e. to lose certain benefits, to suffer certain adverse consequences established by law.

These consequences can be different:

• personal (death penalty, imprisonment);
• property (fine, confiscation of property);
• prestigious (reprimand, deprivation of awards);
• organizational (closing an enterprise, dismissal from a position);
• their combination (recognition of the contract as illegal, deprivation of a driver’s license).

Ticket No. 8

Man on the labor market

A special and unique sphere of socio-economic relations between people is the sphere of relationships between people selling their labor power. The place where labor is bought and sold is labor markets. Here the law of supply and demand reigns supreme. The labor market ensures the distribution and redistribution of labor resources, the mutual adaptation of objective and subjective factors of production. In labor markets, a person gets the opportunity to act in accordance with his own interests and realize his abilities.

Work force– physical and mental capabilities, as well as skills that allow a person to perform a certain type of work.
For the sale of his labor power, the worker receives wages.
Wage- the amount of monetary remuneration that an employer pays to an employee for performing a certain amount of work or performing his official duties.
This means that the price of labor power is wages.

At the same time, the “labor market” means competition for jobs for everyone, a certain freedom of hands for the employer of labor, which under unfavorable circumstances (supply exceeds demand) can cause very negative social consequences - a decrease in wages, unemployment, etc. For someone who is looking for work or is employed, this means that he must, through upgrading and retraining, maintain and deepen his interest in himself as a labor force. This not only provides certain guarantees against unemployment, but also represents the basis for further professional development. Of course, this is not a guarantee against unemployment, because in each specific case, various personal reasons (for example, desires and claims for a certain activity), real conditions (a person’s age, gender, possible obstacles or restrictions, place of residence and much more) should be taken into account. It should be noted that both now and in the future, employees must learn to adapt to the demands placed on them by the labor market, and the conditions themselves, which are changing rapidly. To meet the conditions of the modern labor market, everyone must be prepared for constant changes.

Ticket number 9

1. Nation and national relations

A nation is the highest form of ethnic community of people, the most developed, historically stable, united by economic, territorial-state, cultural, psychological and religious characteristics.

Some scientists believe that a nation is a co-citizenship, i.e. people living in the same state. Belonging to a particular nation is called nationality. Nationality is determined not only by origin, but also by upbringing, culture and human psychology.
There are 2 trends in the development of the nation:
1. National, which is manifested in the desire of each nation for sovereignty, development of its economy, science and art. Nationalism is the doctrine of the priority of the interests and values ​​of one's nation, an ideology and policy based on the ideas of superiority and national exclusivity. Nationalism can develop into chauvinism and fascism - aggressive manifestations of nationalism. Nationalism can lead to national discrimination (denigration and infringement of human rights).
2. International – it reflects the desire of nations for interaction, mutual enrichment, expansion of cultural, economic, and other ties.
Both trends are interconnected and contribute to the progress of human
civilizations.

NATIONAL RELATIONS are the relations between the subjects of national-ethnic development - nations, nationalities, national groups and their state entities.

These relationships are of three types: equality; domination and submission; destruction of other entities.

National relations reflect the entirety of social relations and are determined by economic and political factors. The main ones are political aspects. This is due to the importance of the state as the most important factor in the formation and development of nations. The political sphere includes such issues of national relations as national self-determination, the combination of national and international interests, equal rights of nations, the creation of conditions for the free development of national languages ​​and national cultures, the representation of national personnel in government structures, etc. At the same time, historically developing traditions, social feelings and moods, geographical and cultural-living conditions of nations and nationalities have a strong impact on the formation of political attitudes, political behavior, and political culture.

The main issues in national relations are equality or subordination; inequality of levels of economic and cultural development; national discord, strife, enmity.

1. Social problems in the labor market

Ticket number 10

1. Culture and spiritual life of society

Culture is a very complex phenomenon, which is reflected in the hundreds of definitions and interpretations that exist today. The most common are the following approaches to understanding culture as a phenomenon of social life:
- Technological approach: culture is the totality of all achievements in the development of the material and spiritual life of society.
- Activity approach: culture is creative activity carried out in the spheres of material and spiritual life of society.
- Value approach: culture is the practical implementation of universal human values ​​in the affairs and relationships of people.

Since the 1st century. before. n. e. the word “culture” (from the Latin cultura - care, cultivation, cultivation of the land) meant the upbringing of a person, the development of his soul and education. It finally came into use as a philosophical concept in the 18th - early 19th centuries. and denoted the evolution of humanity, the gradual improvement of language, customs, government, scientific knowledge, art, and religion. At this time, it was close in meaning to the concept of “civilization.” The concept of “culture” was contrasted with the concept of “nature”, i.e. culture is what man created, and nature is what exists independently of him.

Based on numerous works of various scientists, the concept of “culture” in the broad sense of the word can be defined as a historically conditioned dynamic complex of forms, principles, methods and results of active creative activity of people that are constantly updated in all spheres of social life.

Culture in the narrow sense is a process of active creative activity, during which spiritual values ​​are created, distributed and consumed.

In connection with the existence of two types of activity - material and spiritual - two main spheres of the existence and development of culture can be distinguished.

Material culture is associated with the production and development of objects and phenomena of the material world, with changes in the physical nature of man: material and technical means of labor, communication, cultural and social facilities, production experience, skills of people, etc.

Spiritual culture is a set of spiritual values ​​and creative activities for their production, development and application: science, art, religion, morality, politics, law, etc.

Division criterion

The division of culture into material and spiritual is very arbitrary, since it is sometimes very difficult to draw a line between them, because they simply do not exist in a “pure” form: spiritual culture can also be embodied in material media (books, paintings, tools, etc.). d.). Understanding the relativity of the difference between material and spiritual culture, most researchers nevertheless believe that it still exists.

Main functions of culture:
1) cognitive – this is the formation of a holistic idea of ​​a people, country, era;
2) evaluative - differentiation of values, enrichment of traditions;
3) regulatory (normative) - the formation of a system of norms and requirements of society for all individuals in all areas of life and activity (standards of morality, law, behavior);
4) informative - the transfer and exchange of knowledge, values ​​and experience of previous generations;
5) communicative - preservation, transmission and replication of cultural values; development and improvement of personality through communication;
6) socialization - the individual’s assimilation of a system of knowledge, norms, values, accustoming to social roles, normative behavior, and the desire for self-improvement.

The spiritual life of society is usually understood as that area of ​​existence in which objective reality is given to people not in the form of opposing objective activity, but as a reality present in the person himself, which is an integral part of his personality.

A person’s spiritual life arises on the basis of his practical activity; it is a special form of reflection of the surrounding world and a means of interaction with it.

Spiritual life usually includes knowledge, faith, feelings, experiences, needs, abilities, aspirations and goals of people. Taken in unity, they constitute the spiritual world of the individual.

Spiritual life is closely connected with other spheres of society and represents one of its subsystems.

Elements of the spiritual sphere of social life: morality, science, art, religion, law.

The spiritual life of society covers various forms and levels of social consciousness: moral, scientific, aesthetic, religious, political, legal consciousness.

The structure of the spiritual life of society:

Spiritual Needs
They represent the objective need of people and society as a whole to create and master spiritual values

Spiritual activity (spiritual production)
The production of consciousness in a special social form, carried out by specialized groups of people professionally engaged in qualified mental labor

Spiritual benefits (values):
Ideas, theories, images and spiritual values

Spiritual social connections of individuals

Man himself as a spiritual being

Reproduction of social consciousness in its integrity

Peculiarities

Its products are ideal formations that cannot be alienated from their direct producer

The universal nature of its consumption, since spiritual benefits are available to everyone - individuals without exception, being the property of all humanity.

1. Law in the system of social norms

Social norm- a rule of behavior established in society that regulates relationships between people and public life.

Society is a system of interconnected social public relations. These relationships are many and varied. Not all of them are regulated by law. Many relationships in people's private lives are outside of legal regulation - in the sphere of love, friendship, leisure, consumption, etc. Although political and public interactions are mostly of a legal nature, and in addition to law, they are regulated by other social norms. Thus, law does not have a monopoly on social regulation. Legal norms cover only strategic, socially significant aspects of relations in society. Along with law, a large number of regulatory functions in society are performed by a wide variety of social norms.

A social norm is a general rule governing homogeneous, mass, typical social relations.

In addition to law, social norms include morality, religion, corporate rules, customs, fashion, etc. Law is only one of the subsystems of social norms, which has its own specific specifics.

The general purpose of social norms is to regulate the coexistence of people, ensure and harmonize their social interaction, and give the latter a stable, guaranteed character. Social norms limit the individual freedom of individuals by setting the limits of possible, proper and prohibited behavior.

Law regulates social relations in interaction with other norms, as an element of the system of social normative regulation.

Signs of a legal norm

The only one among social norms that comes from the state and is the official expression of its will.

Represents measure of freedom of will and behavior of a person.

Published in specific form.

Is form of implementation and consolidation of rights and obligations participants in public relations.

Supported in its implementation and protected by state power.

Always represents government mandate.

Is the only state regulator of public relations.

Represents general rule of conduct, that is, it indicates: how, in what direction, for what time, on what territory it is necessary for this or that entity to act; prescribes the correct course of action from the point of view of society and therefore obligatory for each individual.

Ticket number 11

1. The Constitution of the Russian Federation is the fundamental law of the country

Constitution of the Russian Federation- the highest normative legal act of the Russian Federation. Adopted by the people of the Russian Federation on December 12, 1993.

The Constitution has the highest legal force, establishing the foundations of the constitutional system of Russia, the state structure, the formation of representative, executive, judicial authorities and the system of local self-government, the rights and freedoms of man and citizen.

The Constitution is the fundamental law of the state, which has the highest legal force, establishing and regulating basic social relations in the sphere of the legal status of the individual, the institutions of civil society, the organization of the state and the functioning of public authority.
It is with the concept of a constitution that its essence is connected - the fundamental law of the state is intended to serve as the main limiter for power in relations with individuals and society.

Constitution:

· consolidates the political system, fundamental rights and freedoms, determines the form of the state and the system of supreme bodies of state power;

· has the highest legal force;

· has direct effect (the provisions of the constitution must be implemented regardless of whether other acts contradict them);

· characterized by stability due to a special, complicated order of adoption and change;

· is the basis for current legislation.

The essence of the constitution, in turn, is manifested through its basic legal properties (that is, characteristic features that determine the qualitative originality of this document), which include:
acting as the fundamental law of the state;
legal supremacy;
acting as the basis of the entire legal system of the country;
stability.
Sometimes the properties of a constitution also include other features - legitimacy, continuity, prospects, reality, etc.
The Constitution of the Russian Federation is the basic law of the country. Despite the fact that this term is not in the official name and text (unlike, for example, the Constitution of the RSFSR of 1978 or the constitutions of Germany, Mongolia, Guinea and other states), this follows from the very legal nature and essence of the constitution.
Legal supremacy. The Constitution of the Russian Federation has the highest legal force in relation to all other legal acts; not a single legal act adopted in the country (federal law, act of the President of the Russian Federation, the Government of the Russian Federation, act of regional, municipal or departmental lawmaking, agreement, court decision, etc. ), cannot contradict the Basic Law, and in case of contradiction (legal conflicts), the norms of the Constitution take precedence.
The Constitution of the Russian Federation is the core of the legal system of the state, the basis for the development of current (sectoral) legislation. In addition to the fact that the Constitution establishes the competence of various public authorities for rule-making and defines the main goals of such rule-making, it directly defines the areas of public relations that must be regulated by federal constitutional laws, federal laws, decrees of the President of the Russian Federation, regulatory legal acts of state authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and so on, it also contains many basic provisions that underlie the development of other branches of law.
The stability of the constitution is manifested in the establishment of a special procedure for changing it (in comparison with laws and other legal acts). From the point of view of the procedure for amendment, the Russian Constitution is “hard” (in contrast to the “soft” or “flexible” constitutions of some states - Great Britain, Georgia, India, New Zealand and others - where changes to the constitution are made in the same order as into ordinary laws, or at least according to a fairly simple procedure).

1. Social mobility

Social mobility- a change by an individual or group in the place occupied in the social structure (social position), movement from one social stratum (class, group) to another (vertical mobility) or within the same social stratum (horizontal mobility). Social mobility- This is the process of a person changing his social status. Social status- the position occupied by an individual or a social group in society or a separate subsystem of society.

Horizontal mobility- the transition of an individual from one social group to another, located at the same level (example: moving from an Orthodox to a Catholic religious group, from one citizenship to another). Distinguish individual mobility- movement of one person independently of others, and group- movement occurs collectively. In addition, they highlight geographic mobility- moving from one place to another while maintaining the same status (example: international and interregional tourism, moving from city to village and back). As a type of geographic mobility, there is concept of migration- moving from one place to another with a change in status (example: a person moved to the city for permanent residence and changed his profession).

Vertical mobility- moving a person up or down the career ladder.

Upward mobility- social rise, upward movement (For example: promotion).

Downward mobility- social descent, downward movement (For example: demotion).

The existence of people in society is characterized by various forms of life activity and communication. Everything that is created in society is the result of the combined joint activities of many generations of people. Actually, society itself is a product of interaction between people; it exists only where and when people are connected with each other by common interests.

In philosophical science, many definitions of the concept “society” are offered. In the narrow sense society can be understood as a certain group of people united to communicate and jointly perform some activity, or a specific stage in the historical development of a people or country.

In a broad sense society - it is a part of the material world isolated from nature, but closely connected with it, which consists of individuals with will and consciousness, and includes ways of interaction of people and forms of their association.

In philosophical science, society is characterized as a dynamic self-developing system, i.e., a system that is capable of seriously changing and at the same time maintaining its essence and qualitative certainty. In this case, the system is understood as a complex of interacting elements. In turn, an element is some further indecomposable component of the system that is directly involved in its creation.

To analyze complex systems, such as the one that society represents, scientists have developed the concept of “subsystem”. Subsystems are “intermediate” complexes that are more complex than the elements, but less complex than the system itself.

1) economic, the elements of which are material production and relationships that arise between people in the process of production of material goods, their exchange and distribution;

2) social, consisting of such structural formations as classes, social strata, nations, taken in their relationship and interaction with each other;

3) political, which includes politics, state, law, their relationship and functioning;

4) spiritual, covering various forms and levels of social consciousness, which, being embodied in the real process of social life, form what is commonly called spiritual culture.

Each of these spheres, being an element of the system called “society”, in turn, turns out to be a system in relation to the elements that make it up. All four spheres of social life not only interconnect, but also mutually determine each other. The division of society into spheres is somewhat arbitrary, but it helps to isolate and study individual areas of a truly integral society, diverse and complex social life.

Sociologists offer several classifications of society. Societies are:

a) pre-written and written;

b) simple and complex (the criterion in this typology is the number of levels of management of society, as well as the degree of its differentiation: in simple societies there are no leaders and subordinates, rich and poor, and in complex societies there are several levels of management and several social strata of the population, arranged from top to bottom in descending order of income);

c) society of primitive hunters and gatherers, traditional (agrarian) society, industrial society and post-industrial society;

d) primitive society, slave society, feudal society, capitalist society and communist society.

In Western scientific literature in the 1960s. The division of all societies into traditional and industrial became widespread (while capitalism and socialism were considered as two types of industrial society).

The German sociologist F. Tönnies, the French sociologist R. Aron, and the American economist W. Rostow made a great contribution to the formation of this concept.

Traditional (agrarian) society represented the pre-industrial stage of civilizational development. All societies of antiquity and the Middle Ages were traditional. Their economy was characterized by the dominance of rural subsistence farming and primitive crafts. Extensive technology and hand tools prevailed, initially ensuring economic progress. In his production activities, man sought to adapt to the environment as much as possible and obey the rhythms of nature. Property relations were characterized by the dominance of communal, corporate, conditional, and state forms of ownership. Private property was neither sacred nor inviolable. The distribution of material goods and manufactured goods depended on a person’s position in the social hierarchy. The social structure of traditional society is class-based, corporate, stable and immobile. There was virtually no social mobility: a person was born and died, remaining in the same social group. The main social units were the community and the family. Human behavior in society was regulated by corporate norms and principles, customs, beliefs, and unwritten laws. Providentialism dominated in public consciousness: social reality, human life were perceived as the implementation of divine providence.

The spiritual world of a person in a traditional society, his system of value orientations, and way of thinking are special and noticeably different from modern ones. Individuality and independence were not encouraged: the social group dictated norms of behavior to the individual. One can even talk about a “group person” who did not analyze his position in the world, and in general rarely analyzed the phenomena of the surrounding reality. He rather moralizes and evaluates life situations from the perspective of his social group. The number of educated people was extremely limited (“literacy for the few”), oral information prevailed over written information. The political sphere of a traditional society is dominated by the church and the army. The person is completely alienated from politics. Power seems to him to be of greater value than right and law. In general, this society is extremely conservative, stable, impervious to innovations and impulses from the outside, representing a “self-sustaining self-regulating immutability.” Changes in it occur spontaneously, slowly, without the conscious intervention of people. The spiritual sphere of human existence has priority over the economic one.

Traditional societies have survived to this day mainly in the countries of the so-called “third world” (Asia, Africa) (therefore, the concept of “non-Western civilizations”, which also claims to be well-known sociological generalizations, is often synonymous with “traditional society”). From a Eurocentric point of view, traditional societies are backward, primitive, closed, unfree social organisms, to which Western sociology contrasts industrial and post-industrial civilizations.

As a result of modernization, understood as a complex, contradictory, complex process of transition from a traditional society to an industrial one, the foundations of a new civilization were laid in the countries of Western Europe. They call her industrial, technogenic, scientific and technical or economic. The economic basis of an industrial society is industry based on machine technology. The volume of fixed capital increases, long-term average costs per unit of output decrease. In agriculture, labor productivity increases sharply and natural isolation is destroyed. Extensive farming is being replaced by intensive farming, and simple reproduction is being replaced by expanded farming. All these processes occur through the implementation of the principles and structures of a market economy, based on scientific and technological progress. Man is freed from direct dependence on nature and partially subjugates it to himself. Stable economic growth is accompanied by an increase in real income per capita. If the pre-industrial period is filled with fear of hunger and disease, then industrial society is characterized by an increase in the well-being of the population. In the social sphere of industrial society, traditional structures and social barriers are also collapsing. Social mobility is significant. As a result of the development of agriculture and industry, the share of the peasantry in the population is sharply reduced, and urbanization occurs. New classes are emerging - the industrial proletariat and the bourgeoisie, and the middle strata are strengthening. The aristocracy is in decline.

In the spiritual sphere, there is a significant transformation of the value system. A person in a new society is autonomous within a social group and is guided by his own personal interests. Individualism, rationalism (a person analyzes the world around him and makes decisions on this basis) and utilitarianism (a person acts not in the name of some global goals, but for a specific benefit) are new coordinate systems for the individual. There is a secularization of consciousness (liberation from direct dependence on religion). A person in an industrial society strives for self-development and self-improvement. Global changes are also taking place in the political sphere. The role of the state is sharply increasing, and a democratic regime is gradually taking shape. Law and law dominate in society, and a person is involved in power relations as an active subject.

A number of sociologists somewhat clarify the above diagram. From their point of view, the main content of the modernization process is a change in the model (stereotype) of behavior, in the transition from irrational (characteristic of a traditional society) to rational (characteristic of an industrial society) behavior. The economic aspects of rational behavior include the development of commodity-money relations, the determining role of money as a general equivalent of values, the displacement of barter transactions, the wide scope of market transactions, etc. The most important social consequence of modernization is considered to be a change in the principle of distribution of roles. Previously, society imposed sanctions on social choice, limiting the possibility of a person occupying certain social positions depending on his membership in a certain group (origin, birth, nationality). After modernization, a rational principle of distribution of roles is established, in which the main and only criterion for occupying a particular position is the candidate’s preparedness to perform these functions.

Thus, industrial civilization opposes traditional society on all fronts. Most modern industrialized countries (including Russia) are classified as industrial societies.

But modernization gave rise to many new contradictions, which over time turned into global problems (ecological, energy, and other crises). By resolving them and progressively developing, some modern societies are approaching the stage of post-industrial society, the theoretical parameters of which were developed in the 1970s. American sociologists D. Bell, E. Toffler and others. This society is characterized by the foregrounding of the service sector, the individualization of production and consumption, an increase in the share of small-scale production while mass production has lost its dominant position, and the leading role of science, knowledge and information in society. In the social structure of post-industrial society, there is an erasure of class differences, and the convergence of income levels of various population groups leads to the elimination of social polarization and an increase in the share of the middle class. The new civilization can be characterized as anthropogenic, with man and his individuality at its center. Sometimes it is also called information, which reflects the increasing dependence of everyday life of society on information. The transition to a post-industrial society for most countries of the modern world is a very distant prospect.

In the course of his activity, a person enters into various relationships with other people. Such diverse forms of interaction between people, as well as connections that arise between different social groups (or within them), are usually called social relations.

All social relations can be conditionally divided into two large groups - material relations and spiritual (or ideal) relations. The fundamental difference between them is that material relations arise and develop directly in the course of a person’s practical activity, outside of a person’s consciousness and independently of him, while spiritual relationships are formed by first “passing through the consciousness” of people and are determined by their spiritual values. In turn, material relations are divided into production, environmental and office relations; spiritual to moral, political, legal, artistic, philosophical and religious social relations.

A special type of social relations are interpersonal relations. Interpersonal relationships refer to relationships between individuals. At In this case, individuals, as a rule, belong to different social strata, have different cultural and educational levels, but they are united by common needs and interests in the sphere of leisure or everyday life. The famous sociologist Pitirim Sorokin highlighted the following types interpersonal interaction:

a) between two individuals (husband and wife, teacher and student, two comrades);

b) between three individuals (father, mother, child);

c) between four, five or more people (the singer and his listeners);

d) between many, many people (members of an unorganized crowd).

Interpersonal relationships arise and are realized in society and are social relationships even if they are of the nature of purely individual communication. They act as a personalized form of social relations.

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The concept of society covers all spheres of human life, relationships and interconnections. At the same time, society does not stand still; it is subject to constant change and development. Let's learn briefly about society - a complex, dynamically developing system.

Features of society

Society as a complex system has its own characteristics that distinguish it from other systems. Let's look at what has been discovered by different sciences. features :

• complex, multi-level nature

Society includes different subsystems and elements. It can include various social groups, both small ones - family, and large ones - class, nation.

Social subsystems are the main spheres: economic, social, political, spiritual. Each of them is also a unique system with many elements. Thus, we can say that there is a hierarchy of systems, that is, society is divided into elements, which, in turn, also include several components.

• presence of different quality elements: material (equipment, structures) and spiritual, ideal (ideas, values)

For example, the economic sphere includes transport, structures, materials for the manufacture of goods, and knowledge, norms, and rules in force in the sphere of production.

• the main element is man

Man is a universal element of all social systems, since he is included in each of them, and without him their existence is impossible.

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• constant changes, transformations

Of course, at different times the speed of change changed: the established order could be maintained for a long time, but there were also periods when rapid qualitative changes in social life occurred, for example, during revolutions. This is the main difference between society and nature.

• order

All components of society occupy their position and certain connections with other elements. That is, society is an ordered system in which there are many interconnected parts. Elements may disappear and new ones appear in their place, but on the whole the system continues to function in a certain order.

• self-sufficiency

Society as a whole is capable of producing everything necessary for its existence, therefore each element plays its role and cannot exist without the others.

• self-government

Society organizes management, creates institutions to coordinate the actions of different elements of society, that is, creates a system in which all parts can interact. Organizing the activities of each individual and groups of people, as well as exercising control, is a feature of society.

Social institutions

The idea of ​​society cannot be complete without knowledge of its basic institutions.

Social institutions are understood as such forms of organizing the joint activities of people that have developed as a result of historical development and are regulated by norms established in society. They bring together large groups of people engaged in some type of activity.

The activities of social institutions are aimed at meeting needs. For example, people's need for procreation gave rise to the institution of family and marriage, and the need for knowledge - the institution of education and science.

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