Society names both actual human networks and the abstract forms of sociality

Evidence

Like any cultural category, the concept of society can be used in either a concrete or an abstract sense. Music, for example, can refer either to a set of actual compositions or performances, or else—abstractly—to the general form by which sounds are organized in rhythmic and melodic patterns for aesthetic effects. In its concrete sense, society designates a complex of societalized individuals, an empirical network of human relationships operative at a given time and place. In the abstract sense of the term, society denotes the totality of those relational forms through which individuals become part of such a network. — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 896

Categorization

• DEFINE: Distinguishes Simmel’s concrete versus abstract senses of ‘society’ — foundational to his whole framework.
• XREF: connects to: Social unity is felt through concrete relations rather than abstract awareness — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 169; Culture names the forms, not the content, of social relationships — Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 882; Sociology’s proper object is the forms relating two or more individuals — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 154 (+5 more)

Related

• Sociology’s proper object is the forms relating two or more individuals (similarity 0.85)
• Society is a concrete generality neither reducible to individuals nor abstract (similarity 0.85)
• A set of individuals can be society to varying degrees. (similarity 0.84)
• A science of society must study only forms of interaction (similarity 0.84)
• Human essence is the ensemble of social relations, not an individual abstraction (similarity 0.83)
• Any social group can act as individual or aggregate depending on its relational frame. (similarity 0.83)
• Sociology studies abstract forms of interaction as geometry studies spatial forms (similarity 0.83)
• Social unity is felt through concrete relations rather than abstract awareness (similarity 0.82)
• Social relations can be analyzed purely as formal configurations (similarity 0.81)
• Individual and society are methodological standpoints, not separable entities (similarity 0.81)
• Sociology relates to social sciences as geometry relates to physics. (similarity 0.80)
• Humanity functions as an organizing idea, not a concrete entity (similarity 0.80)
• There is no single legitimate abstract sociology but several coexisting kinds. (similarity 0.80)
• The formal content distinction in sociology can only be illustrated, not yet defined (similarity 0.80)
• Simmel advanced technical sociology mainly as a byproduct of metaphysical concerns (similarity 0.79)

Broader Connections

• Culture names the forms, not the content, of social relationships #complicates (0.55) — Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 882
• Social unity is felt through concrete relations rather than abstract awareness #expands (0.50) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 169