The Bureaucratic Machine: A User’s Guide to Modern Society

SOCIOL 1228 Subject & Catalog Number

Description

"We are all born originals - why is it so many of us die copies?" - Edward Young

Instructor: Rakesh Khurana
Department: Organizational Behavior (HBS), Department of Sociology (FAS)

This course addresses how bureaucratic organizations have come to dominate modern society and what this means for the individual. We first explore why bureaucracy proliferated since the late 19th century. Next, we look at the inner workings of bureaucratic organizations. Then, we look at what the proliferation of bureaucracy means for us as a society, especially young people, who are products and participants in these systems. 

Young people today navigate a world shaped by organizations, where institutional dependencies have replaced traditional sources of identity and support. Some of the most desired jobs college graduates chase are in large, complex organizations. This course invites us to examine the trade-offs between efficiency, control, and certainty versus creativity, ambiguity, and individuality in a society built on bureaucratic structures, values, and norms.