Human Societies An Introduction to Macrosociology

by Nolan, Patrick; Lenski, Gerhard

• ISBN13: 9780199946020
• ISBN10: 0199946027
• Edition: 11th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-07-15
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Taking a macrosociological, global approach,Human Societiesoffers an introduction to sociology that is truly comparative, cross-cultural, and historical. It compares societies over time and across environments, emphasizing the dynamics of social change. Its clearly developed ecological-evolutionary perspective provides a powerful theoretical framework for understanding the array of social arrangements found in human societies over the past 100,000 years. Since industrial societies are encountered only after this theoretical base has been firmly established and older, simpler, and smaller societies have been examined in detail, students see their own society (and other contemporary societies) in a broader and more meaningful way. By showing how social arrangements are related to the environmental and technological context societies are situated in,HumanSocietiesencourages students to look for the reasons why social arrangements are the way they are, and why they change over time. New to this Edition * Two new readings:The New Population Bomb: The Four Megatrends That Will Change The World, by Jack A. Goldstone, andDisaster Watch, by Joel A. Cohen (New readings are coupled with assignments and questions for classroom discussion, paper topics, and focus groups) * A newTeaching and Learning Supplementon the future--the supplement includes an introduction that explains how teachers and students can use the long-term conceptual tools introduced inHuman Societiesto assess future world developments in demography, culture, politics, economies, and even on such specific topics as terrorism

Author Biography

Patrick Nolan, University of South Carolina
Gerhard Lenski, University of North Carolina

Table of Contents

PART ONE: THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS
1: The Human Condition
2: Human Societies as Sociocultural Systems
3: The Evolution of Human Societies
4: Types of Human Societies

PART TWO: PREINDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES
5: Hunting and Gathering Societies
6: Horticultural Societies
7: Agrarian Societies
8: Some Evolutionary Bypaths and a Brief Review

PART THREE: INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES AND INDUSTRIALIZING SOCIETIES
9: The Industrial Revolution
10: Industrial Societies: Technologies and Economies
11: Industrial Societies: Ideologies and Politics
12: Industrial Societies: Social Stratification
13: Industrial Societies: Population, the Family, and Leisure
14: Industrializing Hybrid Societies
15: Retrospect and Prospect

Teaching and Learning Supplement
Glossary
Web Pages of Interest
Appendix
Notes
Photo and Art Credits
Index
About the Authors