Metodo

International Studies in Phenomenology and Philosophy

Book | Chapter

212058

The vision of the social theorist

Simmel on space

Lawrence A. Scaff

pp. 45-61

Abstract

In modern social theory time and temporality, space and spatiality have become ubiquitous categories. Conceptualizations of a subject matter that emphasize development, evolution, adaptation, genealogy, sequences, stages, transitions, breakthroughs, emergent properties, innovations and continuities, or archaeologies of knowledge inevitably employ notions of unfolding relationships through time, often enriched with temporal metaphors. On the other hand conceptualizations that highlight structure, systems, functions, social position, linkages, domains, boundaries, horizons, formal properties, or networks invariably rely upon images of structured relationships on a "field," often stylized spatially. Using visual imagery, we might say the former resembles a layered excavation, a tracing of processes through time; the latter an architectural edifice, a mapping of forms in space. The one conveys the sense of a moving series or sequence, the other an interconnected framework or grid.

Publication details

Published in:

Rol Cécile, Papilloud Christian (2009) Soziologie als Möglichkeit: 100 Jahre Georg Simmels Untersuchungen über die Formen der Vergesellschaftung. Wiesbaden, Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften.

Pages: 45-61

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-531-91437-4_3

Full citation:

Scaff Lawrence A. (2009) „The vision of the social theorist: Simmel on space“, In: C. Rol & C. Papilloud (eds.), Soziologie als Möglichkeit, Wiesbaden, Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, 45–61.