Chapter 6: Georg Simmel (1858–1918)

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. For Simmel, the essence of society lies in ______.

A. the relations between forces of production

B. the interactions between individuals and groups

C. the interactions between strangers

D. the relations between religion and individuals

Ans: B

2. ______ refers to the intersection of two apparently contradictory forces.

A. Singularity

B. Exchange value

C. Dialectic

D. Duality

Ans: D

3. Simmel argued that sociology should focus on analyzing ______.

A. content of interactions

B. content of individuality

C. patterns of interactions

D. patterns of individuality

Ans: C

4. The defining characteristic of sociability is interaction ______.

A. for the sake of connecting with others

B. in pursuit of an intrinsic goal

C. in pursuit of an extrinsic goal

D. for the sake of developing individuality

Ans: A

5. Simmel defines the “tragedy of culture” as ______.

A. the loss of interpersonal exchange in modern society

B. a precursor to a highly specialized division of labor

C. the domination of material objects over individual creativity

D. a consequence of urban migration

Ans: C

6. Simmel argues that money as a medium of exchange transforms the nature of ______.

A. forms

B. social interaction

C. conflict

D. the stranger

Ans: B

7. Simmel’s basic theoretical orientation, according to the metatheoretical framework, is ______.

A. nonrational and collective

B. nonrational and individual

C. rational and collective

D. rational and individual

Ans: B

8. According to Simmel, the source of economic value is ______.

A. objectively determined via interaction

B. the sacrifice necessary to attain desired goods

C. the amount of labor invested

D. automatically set by the money economy

Ans: B

9. When does an object obtain its highest value for a person?

A. when a person has constructed that object herself

B. at the moment a seller appraises the object

C. when a person uses that object they sacrificed for

D. at the moment the person makes an exchange for that object

Ans: D

10. A “positive” function of conflict is the ______.

A. creation of discord within a group

B. resulting unity that arises after resolution

C. disbandment of one of the conflicting parties

D. persistence of the duality

Ans: B

11. What happens when individuals face conflict as a group?

A. They develop feelings of group solidarity.

B. They become distracted from other goals.

C. They begin to fight with each other.

D. The group begins to destabilize.

Ans: A

12. Simmel defines “sociability” as ______.

A. the play form of association

B. the purest form of all human interaction

C. the duality between conformity and differentiation

D. the result of conflict resolution

Ans: A

13. Which form of sociability captures the duality between consent and denial?

A. conversation between strangers

B. flirtation

C. conflict

D. small talk

Ans: B

14. The duality of conflict involves ______ and ______.

A. nearness; conflict

B. nearness; remoteness

C. unity; conflict

D. unity; remoteness

Ans: C

15. In contending that the stranger is “near and far at the same time,” Simmel notes that the stranger ______.

A. never stays long in a particular community

B. shares many similarities with those he interacts with

C. is unable to provide important services to the community

D. shares only the most general features with those he interacts with

Ans: D

16. According to Simmel, what economic group takes on the appearance of a stranger?

A. landowners

B. traders

C. nobility

D. artists

Ans: B

17. Simmel argues that fashions ______.

A. simultaneously express individuality and conformity

B. require the upper classes to adopt the styles of the lower classes

C. become more “fashionable” as more people adopt the style

D. contain both strangeness and nearness

Ans: A

18. What is a major consequence of the spread of a particular fashion?

A. That fashion will become popular among the upper class.

B. That fashion will soon disappear.

C. The duality of fashion will be resolved.

D. Fewer people will be able to afford it.

Ans: B

19. Simmel defines the “blasé attitude” as ______.

A. the feeling of boredom when visiting small towns

B. an emotional approach to life

C. a response to the intensity of city life

D. necessary for forming relationships in the city

Ans: C

20. In response to the overwhelming nature of the metropolitan city, many people take a(n) ______ approach to life.

A. emotional

B. intellectual

C. fashionable

D. functional

Ans: B

21. Simmel argues that the blasé attitude, combined with the ______, impacts the ability to have an emotionally meaningful life.

A. influx of strangers

B. money economy

C. duality of society

D. forces of production

Ans: B

22. How is Simmel’s analysis of urban life similar to the work of Marx and Weber?

A. All embrace postmodernism.

B. All critique feudalism.

C. All critique modernity.

D. All embrace industrialization.

Ans: C

23. When does economic value become attached to an object?

A. when a person decides how much they will sacrifice for that object

B. when the money economy dictates the objective value

C. when the trader asserts a price

D. when the work of creating the object is complete

Ans: A

24. What does Simmel mean by “the money economy?”

A. the establishment of a universal process of valuation

B. the spread of a qualitative understanding of value

C. the need to always buy goods to capture one’s individuality

D. the calculating approach to exchange that erases qualitative differences

Ans: D

25. Simmel’s concept of duality most closely resembles which concept from another theorist?

A. Marx’s false consciousness

B. Weber’s Verstehen

C. Hegel’s dialectics

D. Durkheim’s sacred

Ans: C

True/False

1. Simmel believes society and individuals compose an interdependent duality.

Ans: T

2. Simmel’s academic interests primarily spanned sociology and economics.

Ans: F

3. Like Marx, Simmel sought to develop a coherent, overarching theory of society.

Ans: F

4. Because of anti-Semitism in his day, Simmel occupied a marginal status in academia.

Ans: T

5. According to Simmel, the source of value is labor power.

Ans: F

6. Simmel argues that most interactions can be viewed as exchanges.

Ans: T

7. According to Simmel, conflict must precede unity.

Ans: T

8. Sociability involves treating all people as if they are equals.

Ans: T

9. Being identified as a type of individual is a product of one’s relationship to others.

Ans: T

10. The stranger shares many similarities with the individuals he interacts with.

Ans: F

11. The stranger is usually identified as the outcast of a group.

Ans: F

12. According to Simmel, fashion primarily symbolizes conformity to a group.

Ans: F

13. A new fashion most likely emerges first in the upper classes.

Ans: T

14. By definition, a fashion must be short-lived.

Ans: T

15. Inhabitants of small towns are bound together by emotional bounds.

Ans: T

16. City dwellers who hate living in the city develop a blasé attitude.

Ans: F

17. The metropolitan personality no longer sees differences in quality.

Ans: T

18. According to Simmel, an isolated object has no economic value.

Ans: T

19. Simmel contends that objects are scarce when they are difficult to obtain.

Ans: T

20. Simmel argues that value and price are always equivalent.

Ans: T

21. Opposition is needed for maintaining a relationship between two things.

Ans: T

22. Being in conflict with another person negatively impacts our own identities.

Ans: F

23. People can choose which social type they are identified as.

Ans: F

24. Small towns are better suited for encouraging individuality.

Ans: F

25. One key characteristic of the blasé attitudes is an intellectual approach to life.

Ans: T

Essay

1. Explain Simmel’s quote “I know I shall die without intellectual heirs, and that is how it should be” in the context of Simmel’s body of work and the discipline of sociology as a whole.

2. Discuss Simmel’s concept of duality and how it addresses the nature of individuality.

3. Explain the difference between content and form in interactions. Provide a concrete contemporary example to illustrate your understanding.

4. Compare and contrast Simmel and Marx’s conceptions of value.

5. Define the term “sociability” and explain how it connects to social life.

6. Explain the following quote from Simmel’s “The Stranger”: “The stranger is near and far at the same time, as in any relationship based on merely universal human similarities.”

7. What is the role of the stranger in a group? Provide a contemporary example of the stranger.

8. Explain the duality of fashion, and how that duality connects to mass production of goods.

9. How do class relations shape the duality of fashion? Do you think this argument holds true today? Provide a specific contemporary example.

10. Compare and contrast Simmel’s argument about metropolitan life with Durkheim’s view of the division of labor.

11. Define Simmel’s blasé attitude and provide concrete examples of it. To what extent do you see the blasé attitude at your school?

12. Summarize Simmel’s argument about flirtation. Then evaluate the extent to which that argument could be applied to interactions on dating apps in contemporary society.

13. What role does interaction play in establishing the value of objects or goods?

14. According to Simmel, what effects does the metropolis have on the psychology and intellect of individuals? How do these effects, in turn, affect expression of individuality?

15. What is the money economy? How does the money economy connect to the blasé attitude?