Changing Theories: New Directions in Sociology

Changing Theories: New Directions in Sociology

by Roberta Garner
ISBN-10:
0802096824
ISBN-13:
2900802096820
Pub. Date:
03/01/2009
Publisher:
Changing Theories: New Directions in Sociology

Changing Theories: New Directions in Sociology

by Roberta Garner
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Overview

Influenced by Thomas Kuhn's work on paradigm shifts in the social sciences, this overview of contemporary theory identifies major themes, charts the impact of social change on theories, acquaints readers with a sample of individual theorists (the "transitional giants" who shaped contemporary theories), explores the impact of contemporary theories on various areas of sociology, and traces how the great social theories of the past are being reinterpreted and incorporated into new theories. The result is an original interpretation of the important role that theory plays both in the real world and in the shaping of an academic discipline.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 2900802096820
Publication date: 03/01/2009
Pages: 256
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

About the Author

Roberta Garner is a professor in the Department of Sociology at DePaul University.
Black Hawk Hancock is Associate Professor of Sociology at DePaul University in Chicago. He is the co-author with Roberta Garner of Changing Theories: New Directions in Sociology (2009) and author of American Allegory: Lindy Hop and the Racial Imagination (2013).

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Introduction: What is Theory, and Why does it Change? 1

Periods of Social Theory 4

The Organization of the Book 7

Part I Changes

Chapter 1 1968-2009: What Happened? 19

Why 1968? 19

A New Global Order: Globalization, Neoliberalism and Market Expansion, and Hyper-Industrialization 21

Issues without Borders: Population Growth, Urbanization, Health and Environmental Problems, and Regional Conflicts 30

The Emerging Distribution of Economic Inequality 35

Cultural Consequences: Postmodern Culture and Ironic Hopelessness 41

How and Why Did All These Changes Happen? 43

Conclusion 47

Chapter 2 Changes in Theory 51

Introduction: Making Theories 51

How and Why Have Sociological Theories Changed in the Past Forty Years? 54

Toward Contemporary Theories 65

Conclusion 95

Part II Transitional Giants

Introduction 99

Chapter 3 Erving Goffman (1922-1982) 103

Major Works, Ideas, and Concepts 103

Total Institutions and Labels 110

Interaction Order and Behavior 117

Frames of Reference and Discourse 120

The Politics and Feeling-Tone of Goffman's Work 123

Rupture and Continuity: Goffman as a Transitional Giant and Postmodernist 125

Chapter 4 Michel Foucault (1926-1984) 129

Major Works, Ideas, and Concepts 130

Foucault and the Traditions of Social Theory 147

Foucault's Impact and Method 151

Foucault's Politics 155

Conclusion: Foucault and the Transition to Contemporary Theory 156

Chapter 5 Pierre Bourdieu (1930-2002) 159

The Craft of Sociology 159

Habitus, Body, Practice 165

Symbolic Power, Symbolic Violence, and Misrecognition 169

Fields, Spaces, and Capitals 171

Taste, Distinction, andNaturalized Categories 180

Public Intellectuals and Politics 182

The Critique of Neoliberalism 183

Conclusion: A Note on Foucault and Bourdieu 187

Chapter 6 Stuart Hall (1932-) 189

Hegemony 190

Ideology 191

Articulation 192

Overdetermination 193

False Consciousness 194

The Function of Common Sense 194

Interpellation and Ideological Subjects 195

Hegemony, Ideology, and Societies Structured in Dominance 196

Race: The Floating Signifier 197

Media: The Politics of Representation 199

Critical Politics of Contesting Images 201

Culture as the Arena of Struggle 201

Identity 203

The Move to Ethnicity 205

Thinking about Multiculturalism 206

Intellectual Labor and Politics of Resistance 207

Conclusion 207

Conclusion 209

The Uneven Impact of Contemporary Theory on Sociology 209

Legacies, Reinterpretations, and New Paradigms 215

Beyond Legacies: What's New? 219

What Will Happen Next? 220

References and Suggestions for Further Reading 221

Note to Readers 221

General Theoretical References (with José Soltero) 221

References and Reading Suggestions for the Transitional Giants 233

Erving Goffman 234

Michel Foucault 235

Pierre Bourdieu 237

Stuart Hall 239

Two Specialized Areas: References and Reading Suggestions 242

Theoretical Development in the Sociology of Families (prepared by Tait Runnfeldt Medina and Julie Artis) 242

Sociology of Health (prepared by Grace Budrys) 245

Index 249

What People are Saying About This

Ron Mize

This is exactly what we need for contemporary theory courses. Hancock and Garner brilliantly dissect the four most eminent theorists who will continue to define the future of sociological theory well into the twenty-first century.

Gianpaolo Baiocchi

A terrific book that should leave a significant imprint on the way we teach and think about social theory. The authors have crafted a text that offers an accessible introduction to the subject while making a bold argument about the nature of theory itself.

David Yamane

The ideas presented in Changing Theories are rich and subtle enough to challenge graduate students, but the presentation is straightforward and accessible enough for undergraduates. This book could be used as the core text in a contemporary theory course, but the idea of 'transitional giants' makes this book uniquely suitable for those of us who want to create a systematic analytical bridge between classical theory and theory as it is practiced today. In the end, the best thing I can say about Hancock and Garner's work is that it makes me want to get into the classroom and teach.

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