The organism metaphor in sociology.

From: Social Research | Date: June 22, 1995| Author: Levine, Donald N. | Copyright information

Biology has influenced sociology via three routes. In the 18th century, the idea that human beings are a subset of the animal kingdom was accepted in sociology, while the idea that human communities are a subset of animal and plant communities entered sociology in the 19th century. Throughout the history of sociology, the figure of the biological organism as a metaphor for human society has also been used. The metaphor of human society as biological organism survived efforts to rid the langua...

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