Sociological Experiments : Facts & Evidence in Maurice Halbwachs’ Theses (1909-1913)
Christian TOPALOV

Summary :
Maurice Halbwachs’ doctoral theses, from the law faculty (Les expropriations et le prix des terrains à Paris 1909) and the arts faculty (La classe ouvrière et les niveaux de vie 1912) are observed here from the point of view of their intellectual content, their methods of establishing the facts and their rhetoric of proof. The way statistical data is manipulated reveals a theory of cause and effect and experimental procedures previously drawn up by François Simian. As a result chronological time scales, forms of spatial organisation and unique events become blurred. The authors quoted to back up his arguments belong, for the most part, to the networks of scholars attached to the Année Sociologique or to the socialist group at the Ecole Normale Supérieure. His way of presenting working class organisations can be traced to data borrowed from housing reformers. When we consider the sociologist’s contacts, both in the academic world and in society, we can easily explain the content of his works.

Key words : Halbwachs, Argument, Statistics, Working Class, Town Planning
Christian.topalov@ehess.fr