Which of the following is true of knowledge based on tradition and authority? a. It influences social policies. b. It exposes myths. c. It challenges overgeneralizations. d. It is the same as knowledge gained by sociological research. e. It can be misleading or wrong.

The correct answer is letter C

Tradition is everything that, over time, was considered important and became common sense that it was the right thing to do or follow. It is a "social heritage" that had its validity and that, despite being passed on, remains alive in memory and in respect. It is almost sacred and must be respected for the simple fact of being.

In Emile Durkheim's view, which is generally common sense, is that tradition is linked to the past, "it is almost all a product of the past". The very vision of tradition, the first thought that comes to mind, is that of old things that are followed without question, but that are simply passed on by the oldest to the youngest, even as a way of maintaining a certain unity. of thought and culture. This perpetuation by direct contact is perhaps the main characteristic of the tradition. It is precisely because of this character that tradition is so strong. Generally, the person who passes on an empirical knowledge of his, already exercises a certain authority, has a certain credit through his interlocutors. It is the authority of the age that basically makes the tradition.

In tradition, gestures, attitudes, labels, techniques, sayings, folklore, law, morals and religion are found. In that sense, tradition is seen as a form of social control.

For Mauss, there are three types of tradition: oral, imitation and conscious. Oral tradition is one made by spoken language, one in which even the smallest conversations are ways of perpetuating knowledge and lived experiences. In tradition by imitation, gestures, manual acts and the very form of moral life are learned by "osmosis", that is, it is not necessary to make a great effort to assimilate that type of knowledge, repetition and conviviality deal with to make the gestures of one of his "transmitter of tradition" imperceptibly. The third type would be the conscious tradition, here there is already the certainty that one has tradition, it is the one that there is no doubt about its capture and rapture by society. It is no longer in a transitory state, it is not yet to be done, nevertheless it is one in which society is aware of itself and its past.