The Consequences of Modernity

The Consequences of Modernity

by Anthony Giddens (Author)

Synopsis

In this major theoretical statement, the author offers a new and provocative interpretation of the institutional transformations associated with modernity. We do not as yet, he argues, live in a post--modern world. Rather the distinctive characteristics of our major social institutions in the closing period of the twentieth century express the emergence of a period of a high modernity,a in which prior trends are radicalised rather than undermined. A post--modern social universe may eventually come into being, but this as yet lies a on the other sidea of the forms of social and cultural organization which currently dominate world history. In developing an account of the nature of modernity, Giddens concentrates upon analyzing the intersections between trust and risk, and security and danger, in the modern world. Both the trust mechanisms associated with modernity and the distinctive a risk profilea it produces, he argues, are distinctively different from those characteristic of pre--modern social orders. This book build upon the authora s previous theoretical writings, and will be of fundamental interest to anyone concerned with Giddena s overall project. However, the work covers issues which the author has not previously analyzed and extends the scope of his work into areas of pressing practical concern. This book will be essential reading for second year undergraduates and above in sociology, politics, philosophy, and cultural studies.

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 200
Edition: 1
Publisher: Polity
Published: 18 Apr 1991

ISBN 10: 0745609236
ISBN 13: 9780745609232

Media Reviews
A highly general and speculative analysis of modernity that is challenging and thought-provoking. . . . This is the kind of book that confronts a discipline, in this case sociology, with a number of issues that can provide a formidable agenda for those who pursue them. . . . It is geared to a wide audience that seeks new insights into the questions modernity has generated. -- Choice
Few contemporary social scientists bring more determination and talent to the daunting task of creating a new tradition than Anthony Giddens. Elements of virtually every classic and contemporary social scientific school and an impressive array of philosophical traditions, each critically assessed and modified, find a home in Giddens' s paradigm. . . . Giddens' s new beginning represents a significant step toward the regeneration of our discipline. -- Contemporary Sociology
Provides a new and quite engaging perspective on the nature of modernity and its peculiar relationships to traditional social forms. Giddens is outstanding in the way that he is able to absorb the whole tradition of social thought since the time of the classical sociologists and to play various theorists off against one another as a means of defining his own argument. He builds not only upon the whole tradition, but upon his own earlier work. -- Herbert Lindenberger, Stanford University
Author Bio
Anthony Giddens is a Fellow of Kinga s College and Professor of Sociology at the University of Cambridge. Other books to his credit include The Constitution of Society (1984, Polity Press) and The Nation--State and Violence (1985, Polity Press).