Contested Knowledge : Social Theory Today

by Seidman, Steven

• ISBN13: 9781118227909
• ISBN10: 1118227905
• Edition: 5th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-08-13
• Publisher: WILEY JOHN & SONS LTD

Summary

In the fifth edition Contested Knowledge, social theorist Steven Seidman presents the latest topics in social theory and addresses the current shift of 'universalist theorists' to networks of clustered debates. Responds to current issues, debates, and new social movements Reviews sociological theory from a contemporary perspective Reveals how the universal theorist and the era of rival schools has been replaced by networks of clustered debates that are relatively 'autonomous' and interdisciplinary Features updates and in-depth discussions of the newest clustered debates in social theory-intimacy, postcolonial nationalism, and the concept of 'the other' Challenges social scientists to renew their commitment to the important moral and political role social knowledge plays in public life

Author Biography

Steven Seidman is Professor of Sociology at State University of New York at Albany. He is a world-renowned social theorist working in the areas of social theory, culture, sexuality, comparative sociology, theory of democracy, nationalism, and globalization. He is the author and editor of several books, including Embattled Eros: Sexual Politics and Ethics in Contemporary America (1992), The Postmodern Turn: New Perspectives on Social Theory (editor, 1995), Queer Theory/Sociology (Blackwell, 1996), The New Social Theory Reader: Contemporary Debates (edited with Jeffrey C. Alexander, 2001), and Beyond the Closet: The Transformation of Gay and Lesbian Life (2002).

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Acknowledgments	p. x
Introduction	p. 1
The Rise of the Classical Tradition	p. 7
Introduction to Part I	p. 9
The Idea of a Science of Society: The Enlightenment and Auguste Comte	p. 11
The Revolutionary Theory of Karl Marx	p. 22
The Promise of Sociology: Emile Durkheim	p. 36
The Ironic Social Theory of Max Weber	p. 48
Afterword to Part I	p. 61
Rethinking the Classical Tradition: American Sociology	p. 65
Introduction to Part II	p. 67
The Grand Theory of Talcott Parsons, Peter Berger, and Thomas Luckmann	p. 70
The Scientific Theory of Randall Collins and Peter Blau	p. 86
The Moral Sociology of C. Wright Mills and Robert Bellah	p. 97
Afterword to Part II	p. 113
Rethinking the Classical Tradition: European Theory	p. 115
Introduction to Part III	p. 117
The Critical Theory of Jürgen Habermas	p. 119
Stuart Hall and British Cultural Studies	p. 132
The Critical Sociology of Anthony Giddens and Pierre Bourdieu	p. 140
Afterword to Part III	p. 152
Revisions and Revolts:The Postmodern Turn	p. 155
Introduction to Part IV	p. 157
The Postmodern World of Jacques Derrida, Jean-Francois Lyotard, and Jean Baudrillard	p. 159
Michel Foucault's Disciplinary Society	p. 175
Zygmunt Bauman's Sociology of Postmodernity	p. 188
Afterword to Part IV	p. 197
Revisions and Revolts: Identity Politics and Theory	p. 201
Introduction to Part V	p. 203
Feminist Theory/Masculinity Studies	p. 205
Critical Race Theory/White Studies	p. 226
Lesbian, Gay, and Queer Theory/Heterosexual Studies	p. 239
Colonial Discourse Studies	p. 254
Afterword to Part V	p. 263
Revisions and Revolts: Theories of World Order	p. 267
Introduction to Part VI	p. 269
From Nation to Globe: David Held and Mary Kaldor	p. 271
Global Capitalism: Immanuel Wallerstein and Manuel Castells	p. 281
The Return of Empire? Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri, David Harvey and Michael Mann	p. 290
Afterword to Part VI	p. 300
The Rise of Postdisciplinary Theory	p. 303
Introduction to Part VII	p. 305
Theories of "the Other"	p. 307
Intimate Life in the "West"	p. 318
Nationalism and the Crisis of Postcolonial Nations	p. 330
Afterword to Part VII	p. 342
Index	p. 345
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