Social Theory for Beginners

ISBN-13: 9781847426758 / Angielski / Twarda / 2010 / 496 str.

Ransome, Paul

Opis

Treating social theory as an exciting intellectual journey in its own right, this new introductory-level textbook presents the key ideas and concepts in social theory together with an account of the intellectual background from which they emerged. It provides an introduction to the major questions and debates facing social theorists and sociologists, and it relates social theory to examples from contemporary culture that will appeal to young undergraduates. The clearly designed presentation and layout features help readers navigate their way around the material, thus giving them the best chance of finding what they need quickly and easily, offering a much needed alternative to the complex, and oftentimes dull, social theory textbooks that are currently available.

Spis treści

Introduction: who is this book for and how do I use it?; What is social theory?; Where did social theory come from?; Émile Durkheim and the coming of industrial society; Karl Marx, capitalism and revolution; Max Weber, rational capitalism and social action; Talcott Parsons, functionalism and the social system; Social interactionism and the real lives of social actors; Western Marxism, Antonio Gramsci and the Frankfurt School; Language, structure, meaning; Discourse and power: post-structuralist social theory; Feminist social theory; Reviving theories of modernity: Habermas, Giddens and Bourdieu; Theories of modernity and post-modernity; Reflexive modernisation: the global dimension and cultural theory; The boundary problem in contemporary social theory.