Deck 4: Society

Question 1

Hunting and gathering societies were the only kind on the Earth from the origins of the human species some 3 million years ago until about:

A) 250,000 years ago.
B) 100,000 years ago.
C) 12,000 years ago.
D) 2,500 years ago.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

What type of society engages in large-scale farming based on the use of plows drawn by animals or more powerful energy sources?

A) hunting and gathering
B) horticultural
C) pastoral
D) agrarian

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Humans first planted gardens in which region of the world?

A) Africa
B) Asia
C) Latin America
D) the Middle East

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The story of the Tuareg nomads that begins Chapter 4 in the text shows us that:

A) all human societies are mostly the same.
B) some societies change faster than our own.
C) some societies have little knowledge of newspapers, cellular phones or other things familiar to us in the United States.
D) some societies have advanced powerful technology than our own.

Question 5

Where in the world did large-scale cultivation or farming first develop?

A) in southeast Asia
B) in the Middle East
C) in North America
D) in Africa

Question 6

Agrarian technology developed based on the use of:

A) the plow.
B) animal power.
C) the development of metals.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 7

Which of the following factors would Lenski's approach highlight as bringing about change in society?

A) the telephone
B) conflict between workers and factory owners
C) new religious movements
D) the extent to which people share moral values

Question 8

The chapter's "Seeing Sociology in the News" article about animal herders explains that:

A) pastoral people are still found in many of the world's countries.
B) pastoral people are concerned about the encroachment of others and their loss of land.
C) pastoral people are making efforts to work together to address common problems.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 9

A great danger to hunting and gathering societies is:

A) warfare.
B) growing more food than they can carry.
C) the forces of nature, including storms and droughts.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 10

The first type of society to generate a material surplus is:

A) hunting and gathering.
B) horticultural and pastoral.
C) agrarian.
D) industrial.

Question 11

Today, hunting and gathering societies:

A) are quickly spreading around the world.
B) represent about half the world's population.
C) are few in number but are found on every continent.
D) are close to disappearing from the world.

Question 12

Which of the following is True of hunting and gathering societies?

A) Population is small they are nomadic.
B) Population is large they live in villages.
C) Population is small they raise crops and animals.
D) Population is large most people are farmers.

Question 13

The social standing of women and men in hunting and gathering societies is:

A) unequal, with men controlling farming.
B) fairly equal, with men and women making a vital contribution to survival.
C) unequal, with women raising the young while men secure food.
D) equal, because both men and women perform the same tasks.

Question 14

Which of the following concepts refers to people who interact in a defined territory and share culture?

A) culture
B) society
C) nation
D) state

Question 15

Horticultural societies are those in which:

A) people are nomadic.
B) people hunt animals and gather vegetation.
C) people have learned to raise animals.
D) people use simple hand tools to raise crops.

Question 16

As societies generate a greater productive surplus, their people generally:

A) become more socially equal.
B) gain more productive specialization.
C) become less warlike.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 17

The Roman Empire at its peak power was what type of society?

A) hunting and gathering
B) horticultural and pastoral
C) agrarian
D) industrial

Question 18

In hunting and gathering societies:

A) men and women do almost entirely the same tasks.
B) men hunt animals while women gather vegetation.
C) women hunt animals while men gather vegetation.
D) men and women work together as hunters.

Question 19

Gerhard Lenski claimed that which of the following has the greatest power to shape a society?

A) technology
B) social conflict
C) human ideas
D) human desire for change

Question 20

According to Lenski, the term sociocultural evolution refers to:

A) changes brought about by new ways of thinking.
B) changes created by ideas coming from other societies.
C) change that results from social conflict.
D) changes that occur as a society acquires new technology.

Question 21

Many people have marveled at the Great Wall in China and the Great Pyramids in Egypt. These monuments stand as evidence of the productive power of which type of society?

A) hunting and gathering
B) horticultural and pastoral
C) agrarian
D) industrial

Question 22

In the socialist society Marx hoped to see, which of the following would be True?

A) Capitalists would pay fair wages to workers.
B) Class conflict would no longer exist.
C) All people would do the same work.
D) Factory technology would be abolished.

Question 23

As the suffering of workers became worse, Marx predicted that they would:

A) eventually starve to death.
B) rise up against the capitalist system.
C) go into business for themselves.
D) demand that women as well as men join the labor force.

Question 24

In terms of social inequality, agrarian societies generally:

A) have much more inequality than less productive societal types.
B) have about the same amount of social inequality as less productive societal types.
C) have less social inequality than less productive societal types.
D) come very close to being egalitarian societies.

Question 25

To compare societies at different times in history, Max Weber made use of:

A) ideal types.
B) stereotypes.
C) statistical rates.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 26

Industrialization changes societies in many ways. All of the following except for one are changes brought on by industrialization. Which is NOT such a change?

A) A larger share of a society's people live in cities.
B) There are fewer types of jobs and fewer people now work for income.
C) The rate of social change increases.
D) Advances in communication and transportation make society seem smaller.

Question 27

Compared to an industrial society, a postindustrial society is based on:

A) an information-based economy.
B) a factory-based economy.
C) an immigrant labor force.
D) a less productive economy.

Question 28

Marx described alienation as involving which of the following?

A) alienation from the act of working
B) alienation from the products of work
C) alienation from other workers
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 29

Marx described the widespread beliefs that supported the capitalist economic system as:

A) False consciousness.
B) class consciousness.
C) cultural awareness.
D) revolutionary politics.

Question 30

Karl Marx used a philosophical approach called _____, Max Weber followed an approach called _____.

A) tradition rationality
B) rationality tradition
C) materialism idealism
D) idealism materialism

Question 31

Gerhard Lenski claims that the development of more complex technology:

A) is entirely positive.
B) has both positive and negative effects.
C) is entirely negative in its effect.
D) has no effect on the quality of human life.

Question 32

Films about advancing technology, including "Frankenstein," make the point that advancing technology:

A) not only solves some problems but creates new ones.
B) is the solution to all human problems.
C) will never do anything good for humanity.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 33

Karl Marx argued that the dominant social institution is:

A) the family.
B) religion.
C) politics.
D) the economy.

Question 34

Which of the following types of society has the most productive specialization?

A) hunting and gathering
B) horticultural and pastoral
C) agrarian
D) industrial

Question 35

Assume you are studying a society that has just invented cities, has increasing specialization, and has just started using money to buy and sell goods and services. It is likely that the society is at which stage of sociocultural evolution?

A) hunting and gathering
B) horticultural and pastoral
C) agrarian
D) industrial

Question 36

The driving force of social change, according to Marx, is:

A) advancing technology.
B) social conflict between classes.
C) dominant ideas.
D) the way in which society is held together.

Question 37

Karl Marx believed that the industrial-capitalist system was:

A) very productive.
B) concentrating wealth in the hands of a few.
C) giving rise to two great classes: capitalists and proletarians.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 38

Marx called those who own and operate factories and other businesses in pursuit of profits:

A) proletarians.
B) peasants.
C) capitalists.
D) burghers.

Question 39

As Marx used the concept, alienation means:

A) the sense of not knowing right from wrong.
B) that most people do not want to work at all.
C) that people object to highly specialized work.
D) the experience of isolation and misery resulting from powerlessness.

Question 40

The birth of the discipline of sociology took place during the development of which type of society?

A) pastoral
B) horticultural
C) industrial
D) agrarian

Question 41

Comparing and contrasting the ideas of Karl Marx and Max Weber, which of the following statements is True?

A) Marx thought modern society was alienating Weber did not.
B) Weber thought modern society was alienating Marx did not.
C) Both Marx and Weber thought modern society was alienating, although for different reasons.
D) Neither Marx nor Weber thought modern society was alienating.

Question 42

Which of the following concepts was used by Durkheim to name a condition in which society provides little moral guidance to individuals?

A) division of labor
B) False consciousness
C) anomie
D) alienation

Question 43

Karl Marx considered capitalism to be _____, but Max Weber argued that capitalism was very _____.

A) irrational rational
B) rational irrational
C) unproductive productive
D) productive unproductive

Question 44

How would Durkheim describe the importance of a social structure such as family?

A) Family is one important source of inequality.
B) Family exists only in the meaning it has for a particular person.
C) Family plays a part in the operation of society.
D) Family is the result of humanity's biological evolution.

Question 45

Max Weber described the features of rational social organization pointing to all but one of the following. Which one is NOT part of his analysis?

A) organizations become large-scale
B) self-discipline is important
C) people in the workplace share highly personal relationships
D) technical competence is the key to getting jobs

Question 46

It would be correct to say that Durkheim thought of society as:

A) existing only in the human mind.
B) an objective reality.
C) changing from moment to moment.
D) having no clear existence at all.

Question 47

Weber could see the advantages of industrial capitalism,

A) and he was optimistic about the future.
B) but he thought it would never actually develop.
C) but he thought workers would soon overthrow the system.
D) but he was pessimistic about the future.

Question 48

According to Max Weber, early Calvinists were:

A) deeply religious and highly disciplined.
B) eager to enjoy what money could buy.
C) people who respected the past.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 49

Which of the following would likely be a question Emile Durkheim would ask about the 2001 terrorist attacks?

A) How did these attacks unite people across the United States?
B) Which class benefits most from the war on terror?
C) What new kinds of technology will come out of this crisis?
D) How might the attacks increase bureaucracy and the power of government?

Question 50

Which of the following would likely be a question Emile Durkheim would ask about computer technology and the Information Revolution?

A) Will computer technology work to unite people or isolate individuals?
B) How might computer technology further increase specialization?
C) Might access to unlimited information on the Internet increase the danger of anomie?
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 51

In describing the rationalization of society, Max Weber claimed that modern society had become:

A) more religious.
B) disenchanted.
C) full of anomie.
D) less productive.

Question 52

What concept did Durkheim use to refer to social bonds, which are strong among members of industrial society and are based on specialization and mutual interdependence?

A) Gesellschaft
B) mechanical solidarity
C) collective conscience
D) organic solidarity

Question 53

Emile Durkheim saw society as a system "beyond us" with the power to guide our lives. Therefore, he described elements of society, including cultural norms, values, and beliefs as:

A) social facts.
B) ideal types.
C) False consciousness.
D) forms of rationality.

Question 54

Max Weber's analysis of the rise of capitalism provides strong evidence of:

A) the results of class conflict.
B) the effects of increasing specialization.
C) the importance of advancing technology.
D) the power of ideas to change society.

Question 55

What Lenski called the industrial society and Marx called the capitalist society, Weber considered:

A) a technological society.
B) an ideal society.
C) a traditional society.
D) a rational society.

Question 56

Looking over the long course of history, Durkheim claimed that societies change as _____ gives way to _____.

A) Gesellschaft Gemeinschaft
B) individualism collective conscience
C) mechanical solidarity organic solidarity
D) organic solidarity mechanical solidarity

Question 57

Durkheim claimed that, for each of us as individuals, society:

A) maintains the highest level of personal privacy.
B) helps free people from human culture.
C) helps people "be all they can be."
D) regulates individuals, reining in their desires and passions.

Question 58

Weber traced the origins of the capitalist economy in Europe to:

A) colonialism.
B) feudal monarchy.
C) the Protestant Reformation.
D) technological innovation.

Question 59

When Weber used the concept "rationality," he had in mind:

A) a concern with what's good for the entire community.
B) a respect for tradition.
C) deliberate, matter-of-fact calculation of the most efficient way to accomplish any task.
D) limiting the extent of class conflict.

Question 60

How did Weber describe traditional societies?

A) People look open-mindedly to the future.
B) People pass the same values and beliefs from generation to generation.
C) People live in the present, paying little attention to the past or the future.
D) People strive to be more and more productive.

Question 61

Forces of nature have the greatest effect on societies with the simplest technology.

Question 62

Gerhard Lenski dismissed technology as of little importance in shaping cultural patterns.

Question 63

Many pastoral societies are nomadic.

Question 64

Of the following sociologists, which one was most interested in how society is divided?

A) Gerhard Lenski
B) Karl Marx
C) Max Weber
D) Emile Durkheim

Question 65

Hunting and gathering societies are nomadic.

Question 66

Compared to hunting and gathering societies, horticultural and pastoral societies have more productive specialization and greater social inequality.

Question 67

If you were to hear a sociologist speaking of class conflict as the "engine of history," which of the following would it most likely be?

A) Gerhard Lenski
B) Karl Marx
C) Max Weber
D) Emile Durkheim

Question 68

Pastoral and horticultural societies are not capable of a productive surplus.

Question 69

If you wanted to learn more about a society's worldview to be a powerful force causing change, to which of the following sociologists would you turn?

A) Gerhard Lenski
B) Karl Marx
C) Max Weber
D) Emile Durkheim

Question 70

Gerhard Lenski used the concept "sociocultural evolution" to refer to how technological innovation changes the shape of societies.

Question 71

Hunting and gathering societies generate a productive surplus.

Question 72

Agriculture differs from horticulture by making use of the animal-drawn plow that can cultivate much more land.

Question 73

Of the following sociologists, which one might you most expect to be having a conversation about the question of what holds society together?

A) Gerhard Lenski
B) Karl Marx
C) Max Weber
D) Emile Durkheim

Question 74

Agrarian societies typically have dramatic social inequality.

Question 75

Hunting and gathering societies have elected leaders.

Question 76

Hunting and gathering societies around the world contain a large and increasing share of global population.

Question 77

Gerhard Lenski claims that the invention of horticultural or pastoral technology is a clear case of societal progress toward a better way of life.

Question 78

Of the three founding sociologists considered in Chapter 4 of the text, who held the most optimistic view of modern society?

A) Karl Marx
B) Max Weber
C) Emile Durkheim
D) All were equally optimistic.

Question 79

Durkheim explained that organic solidarity is based on:

A) specialization and interdependence.
B) collective conscience.
C) shared moral values.
D) common cultural heritage.

Question 80

Horticultural societies typically form permanent settlements.