This volume is divided into two sections, the first presenting work by urban ecologists, the second presenting work by persons working within the broad contours of the new urban sociology. Each section contains chapters written by well-known scholars as well as promising young authors. The resulting essays allow not only a comparison of theoretical perspectives but also of the ways in which proponents of each perspective see the field developing in the future. The final section of the volume includes an article by William Flanagan, author of "Urban Sociology: Images and Structure," the only...

Too often the term "ghetto" is simply applied to any African American community, to the inner city as a whole, or recently to anything that is degraded or unrefined. But what is a ghetto? Does it arise organically from cities, or is it a consequence of social conflict and government policy? Are the banlieues, barrios, favelas, shantytowns, and slums of Europe, South America, and other continents similar to the American ghetto?

The Ghetto invites us to reexamine our assumptions by addressing these and other critical questions. Concise, original essays from top scholars around...