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"Sociological Theory gives readers a comprehensive overview of the major theorists and schools of sociological thought, from sociology's 19th century origins through the early 21st century. Written by an author team that includes one of the leading contemporary thinkers, the text integrates key theories with with biographical sketches of theorists, placing them in historical and intellectual context"--

This concise text, covers both classical and contemporary social thought. It traces the major schools of thought over the past 150 years as they appear and reappear in different chapters and looks at important new voices in social theory. The treatment of individual theories and theorists is balanced with the development of key themes and ideas about social life

1. Introduction : the history of sociological theory -- 2. Functionalism -- 3. Conflict theory -- 4. Marxism -- 5. Feminism -- 6. Exchange theory -- 7. Interactionism -- 8. Ethnomethodology -- 9. Structuralism -- 10. Conclusion : the present and future of sociological theory.

Introducing readers to the most important thinkers and schools of thought in contemporary sociological theory - from Parsons and Merton to the Frankfurt School to Foucault, Bourdieu, Giddens and Hochschild - this accessible textbook firmly locates key ideas in social, political and historical context. By doing so, it helps students understand the development of central sociological concepts and how they can help us understand the contemporary world. The book includes: Lively biographical sections to help readers get to know each thinker Clear and easy-to-understand accounts of each theorist's arguments - and the most common criticismsKey concept boxes highlighting the most influential ideas This comprehensive textbook brings the diverse field of contemporary sociological theory to life. Essential reading for all students in Sociology and Sociological Theory.

"Classical Sociological Theory, Eighth Edition, provides a comprehensive overview of the major theorists and schools of sociological thought from the Enlightenment roots of theory through the early 20th century. The integration of key theories with biographical sketches of theorists and the requisite historical and intellectual context helps students to better understand the original works of classical authors as well as to compare and contrast classical theories"--

A concise, yet surprisingly comprehensive theory text, given the range of ideas, historical context, and theorists discussed. Unlike other books of the type, Classical Sociological Theory focuses on how the pivotal theories contributed not only to the development of the field, but also to the evolution of ideas concerning social life.

"Classical sociological theory shapes the discipline of sociology, but also all of modern social thought. It influences politics, economics, and legal decisions. Preachers refer to it in sermons, journalists in newspaper columns. It shapes how both experts and ordinary people think about race, gender, sexuality, family, community, nationalism, military service, business corporations, social movements, and response to emergencies. It enables us to see connections among different events, institutions, and trends. It helps us to see general patterns in social life. And it helps us relate personal life to society. This is important at all scales from interpersonal relations like love or friendship to large-scale patterns in economy, government, or culture. Sociological theory helps us to see to what extent we can choose the conditions we live under. It helps us literally to judge what is possible and what is not, and what are the likely consequences of different courses of action. Sociological theory does not tell us what parties to vote for, what religion to profess - if any - or what moral values are right. But it does enable us to make systematic and informed judgments about what policies will promote our values and which will be likely to undermine them. It helps us to locate our personal experiences and shared projects in larger social and historical contexts. As C. Wright Mills put it: "Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both.""--

Society as a system of subsystems -- Manifest and latent functions : the Matthew effect -- An automated utopia : systems theory -- From functionalism to structuralism -- Constructivist structuralism : habitus -- The analysis of socially constructed reality -- Interactionism -- Dramaturgy -- Ethnomethodology -- The information society -- A new modernity -- Individuals as the basis of social actions -- The theory of communicative action -- The dialogic turn in the social sciences