社會學不只是一門社會科學，它還是一門倫理之學，這門學問理應有助於學習者更好地認識自己、理解他人，以及認同、尊重或承認各個不同文化社會的價值。基於以上觀點，我們認為，共同參與社會倫理學這樣一門課程的學習與討論，是有相當意義的，值得付出心力的。
不同於一般的社會倫理學把重心放在道德規範的探討上，這門課既不提供教條式的道德準則，也不給出應然的倫理要求，而是試圖打開一些實在的社會倫理情境，讓學習者去思考這些情境所彰顯的倫理問題。在人們平順的日常生活中，或許並不常經遇到這類問題，即便遇到了，也可能習以為常，不以為意；然而，社會學作為一門「惹是生非」、「自找麻煩」的學問，就是要和積非成是的成見以及令人不安的社會倫理情境打交道，讓那些原本可能不成問題的問題再次成為難解的謎團，進而經由個人的反思，以及不同意見的交換或討論，使原已僵化的常識或共識，變得不再那麼理所當然，從而也開啟了一個充滿各種可能性的社會世界。
Zygmunt Bauman與Tim May合著的Thinking Sociologically一書，涉及社會倫理議題的諸多面向，對日常生活中的社會關係網絡也有深入淺出的探討，不失為社會倫理學的適當教材；在此課程中，我們將細細品味這本兩百餘頁的小書。因這本書而對Bauman學說有興趣的同學，可以進一步閱讀他的其他著作；此外，Simmel、Weber、Schutz與Giddens等社會學家，也都有社會倫理學的相關論著，請修課同學自行參考。

Sociology is not only a social science, it is also a study of ethics. This study should help learners better understand themselves, understand others, and identify, respect or recognize the values ​​of different cultural societies. Based on the above points of view, we believe that jointly participating in the study and discussion of a course like social ethics is of considerable significance and worth the effort.
Different from the general social ethics that focuses on the discussion of moral norms, this course neither provides dogmatic moral principles nor the ethical requirements that should be expected. Instead, it attempts to open up some real social ethical situations and allow learners to think about the ethical issues highlighted in these situations. In people's normal daily life, they may not often encounter such problems, and even if they do, they may be accustomed to it and not take it seriously. However, sociology, as a discipline that "makes trouble" and "asks for trouble", is to counteract stereotypes and disturbing social and ethical situations. Dealing with people makes those problems that may not have been a problem once again become difficult to solve mysteries. Through personal reflection and exchange or discussion of different opinions, the already rigid common sense or consensus becomes no longer so natural, thus opening up a social world full of various possibilities.
Thinking Sociologically, a book co-authored by Zygmunt Bauman and Tim May, covers many aspects of social ethics issues and provides an in-depth and simple discussion of the social relationship network in daily life. It can be regarded as an appropriate teaching material for social ethics; in this course, we will carefully savor this small book of more than 200 pages. Students who are interested in Bauman's theory because of this book can further read his other works. In addition, sociologists such as Simmel, Weber, Schutz, and Giddens also have relevant works on social ethics. Students taking the course are advised to refer to it themselves.

Bauman, Zygmunt & May, Tim. 1990, 2001, Thinking Sociologically. Basil Blackwell Ltd, Oxford.
〔中譯本一〕Bauman、Tim合著，李康譯，2010，《社會學之思》。北京：社會科學文獻出版社。（譯自2001年第二版）
〔中譯本二〕Bauman著，朱道凱譯，2002，《社會學動動腦》。台北：群學出版社。（譯自1990年第一版）
〔中譯本三〕Bauman著，高華、呂東、徐慶、薛曉源譯，2002，《通過社會學去思考》。北京：社會科學文獻出版社。（譯自1990年第一版）

Bauman, Zygmunt & May, Tim. 1990, 2001, Thinking Sociologically. Basil Blackwell Ltd, Oxford.
[Chinese Translation 1] Co-authored by Bauman and Tim, translated by Li Kang, 2010, "Thoughts on Sociology". Beijing: Social Sciences Literature Press. (Translated from the second edition in 2001)
[Chinese translation version 2] Written by Bauman, translated by Zhu Daokai, 2002, "Sociology Use Your Brain". Taipei: Qunxue Publishing House. (Translated from the first edition in 1990)
[Chinese Translation 3] Written by Bauman, translated by Gao Hua, Lu Dong, Xu Qing, and Xue Xiaoyuan, 2002, "Thinking Through Sociology". Beijing: Social Sciences Literature Press. (Translated from the first edition in 1990)