Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 5.djvu/653

 THE SCOPE OF SOCIOLOGY 637

The work of Ward made an era in American sociology, and the fact will be admitted in the future even by men whose methods are very different from those which Ward proposed.

The animating conception of Ward's work is that dynamic sociology must be the application of all available forces, physi- cal, industrial, spiritual," to the attainment of rational social ends. It may be said that this is a platitude. On the contrary, com- pared with certain very firmly intrenched views of society it is practically a paradox. For instance, Gumplowicz' Grundriss der Sociologie appeared two years later than Dynamic Sociology. In the chapter on class structure and the aristocratic order (p. 133) the author browbeats those bold democrats who presume to question the desirability of priests and lords. While he very properly shows that each of these classes corresponds to a social need, and that the merit of each is to be determined by its dis- charge of the indicated function, he adds: "Besides, sociology must refrain from all such criticism of nature. For sociology only the facts and their conformity to laws have an interest." According to him the question, "Could things not be different and better?" is not permissible from the sociological standpoint, for "social phenomena follow necessarily from the nature of men and from the nature of their relationships." In other words, Gumplowicz assumes that what is is nature. Ward assumes that what is may be nature partially realized, and that the destiny of nature is to realize itself completely through action by its con- scious parts upon its unconscious parts. This " artificial progress " will not nullify nature, but will make potential nature actual.

The antithesis between Ward and sociologists like Gumplo- wicz, or even Spencer, appears in his belief that mind can work natural laws to more splendid demonstration of the laws. He therefore demands more knowledge of all the laws concerned. "The attitude of man toward nature should be twofold : first, that of a student ; second, that of a master.' In a word Ward's funda- mental proposition is : we must learn the quality and modes of

■Of course, this use of popular terms does not imply that Ward classifies social forces under these categories.

'Dyn. Soc, II, 11. -