Great Thinkers

Meet the great minds whose ideas have shaped the world — philosophers, scientists, artists, leaders, and revolutionaries whose thinking still matters today.

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Subject: Sociology × Era: Modern ×
Sociology
Jane Addams
1860-1935 · United States
Jane Addams was an American sociologist, social reformer, and peace activist. She is one of the founders of American sociology, though she was left out…
Ethical thinking Emotional intelligence Critical thinking Research skills +1
"The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated…"
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Sociology
Max Weber
1864-1920 · Germany
Max Weber (1864-1920) was a German sociologist who wrote about religion, politics, economics, and the nature of modern society. He was born in Erfurt, in…
Critical thinking Scientific thinking Research skills Ethical thinking +1
"The fate of our times is characterised by rationalisation and intellectualisation, and, above all, by the disenchantment of the world."
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Sociology
Patricia Hill Collins
1948-present · United States
Patricia Hill Collins is an American sociologist. She is one of the most important thinkers on race, gender, and power in recent decades. She was…
Critical thinking Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Research skills +1
"Self-definition is a way of resisting oppression."
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Sociology
Pierre Bourdieu
1930-2002 · France
Pierre Bourdieu (1930-2002) was a French sociologist whose work on class, culture, and power made him one of the most influential social scientists of the…
Critical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Ethical thinking Research skills +1
"Taste classifies, and it classifies the classifier."
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Sociology
Silvia Rivera Cusicanqui
1949-present · Bolivia
Silvia Rivera Cusicanqui is a Bolivian sociologist, historian, and activist of Aymara heritage. She is one of the most important thinkers on colonialism and Indigenous…
Critical thinking Ethical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Research skills +1
"There can be no discourse of decolonisation, no theory of decolonisation, without a decolonising practice."
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Sociology
Stuart Hall
1932-2014 · Jamaica / United Kingdom
Stuart McPhail Hall was a Jamaican-born British sociologist and cultural theorist. He is one of the founding figures of cultural studies. He was born on…
Critical thinking Cultural heritage and identity Creative expression Ethical thinking +1
"Identity is not as transparent or unproblematic as we think."
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Sociology
W.E.B. Du Bois
1868-1963 · United States
W.E.B. Du Bois (1868-1963) was an American sociologist, historian, civil rights activist, and one of the most important intellectual figures of the twentieth century. His…
Critical thinking Citizenship Cultural heritage and identity Research skills +1
"The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the colour line."
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