In order for us to understand why sociological theories could be classified into "consensus" and "conflict" perspectives. Let us first look at the definitions of these two concepts of consensus and conflict. Consensus is a concept of society in which the absence of conflict is seen as the equilibrium state of society based on a general or widespread agreement among all members of a particular society. Conflict is a disagreement or clash between opposing ideas, principles, or people-this can be a covert or overt conflict. Conflict theory, therefore, is a theory or collection of theories which places emphasis on...
Talcott Parsons set out to synthesis Weber"s and Durkheim"s work, but he tend to be more Durkheimian than Weberian. Thirdly, these social theorists derived their theories from the works of a predecessor social theorist like Parsons himself, others before him and those who came later including critics. Therefore, as we have seen from these four paradigms it is clear why some sociological theories can be categorized collectively as conflict theories and why other theories are considered as consensus theories. To put it simply it is their emphasis of explanation and interpretation by other social theorists that made them so.