Cole’s Writings on Sociology, Normativity, the Canon and Teaching

This chapter outlines what Cole had to say about sociology as a discipline. I begin by discussing how he defines the discipline before turning to his discussion of the canon. Most significant here were Durkheim and Marx. While he was more open to the latter than the former (though he did have positive things to say about Durkheim) his generous treatment of both distanced him from British sociology which either, due to its conservativism, didn’t want to be tainted with any notion of political radicalism while, on the other hand, treated Durkheim as a representative of problematic ‘group mind approaches’. From here I will expand upon Cole’s view on the inevitably normative ends of sociology and how that differed from the consensus at the time. Finally, I will discuss Cole’s views on, and contributions towards, the teaching of sociology. Cole advocated, for the short-term at least, an interdisciplinary approach to the subject, with specialisation delayed as long as possible. He also advocated an expansion in universities with a local and regional focus for sociology. Cole also contributed greatly to his own institute, Oxford University, accepting sociology, most notably in the ‘Cole Group’, the weekly reading group he ran which included sociological discussion. Stuart Hall, a regular attendee, noted the importance for the group in bringing together the New Left.