Investigating Sociological Theory

New
Paperback
2010
$38.95

'This book is not an encyclopaedic survey of the most influential or important sociological theories of the 20th century; nor is it an institutional history of sociological theory; it is not a textbook, a distillation of the accumulated knowledge of a particular discipline; nor is it a crib, a set of ready-made and easily-remembered answers to imagined examination questions. It is more of a reader's guide, a series of hints and suggestions for those who, whether students or teachers, believe that sociology is a profession and a discipline but also something more...' - Charles Turner in the introduction to Investigating Sociological Theory . This is an accessible, enlivening introductory book that provides a shot in the arm for all those who maintain the relevance of sociology for understanding the modern world. It will inspire discussion in classes, and provide teachers with an opportunity to discuss the big questions in theory, history, social order and social change. Turner provides a wealth of concrete examples which demonstrate what a sociological perspective can do to unpack and illuminate everyday life. The book allows students to understand sociological theory from the inside. It moves effortlessly beyond the mere parade of great names and core ideas to introduce concepts that can be used to understand the social world in which we live, where this world has come from and where it might be heading. Original, informed, and deftly written with the needs of students in mind, this book is an antidote to arid theorising and the dull recitation of the grand sociological tradition.

Synopsis

'This book is not an encyclopaedic survey of the most influential or important sociological theories of the 20th century; nor is it an institutional history of sociological theory; it is not a textbook, a distillation of the accumulated knowledge of a particular discipline; nor is it a crib, a set of ready-made and easily-remembered answers to imagined examination questions. It is more of a reader's guide, a series of hints and suggestions for those who, whether students or teachers, believe that sociology is a profession and a discipline but also something more...' - Charles Turner in the introduction to "Investigating Sociological Theory". This is an accessible, enlivening introductory book that provides a shot in the arm for all those who maintain the relevance of sociology for understanding the modern world. It will inspire discussion in classes, and provide teachers with an opportunity to discuss the big questions in theory, history, social order and social change. Turner provides a wealth of concrete examples which demonstrate what a sociological perspective can do to unpack and illuminate everyday life. The book allows students to understand sociological theory from the inside. It moves effortlessly beyond the mere parade of great names and core ideas to introduce concepts that can be used to understand the social world in which we live, where this world has come from and where it might be heading. Original, informed, and deftly written with the needs of students in mind, this book is an antidote to arid theorising and the dull recitation of the grand sociological tradition.

$38.95

Quantity

7 in stock

More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 216
Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd
Published: 22 Mar 2010
ISBN 10: 184920375X
ISBN 13: 9781849203753

Media Reviews

Conceptually rigorous, rich in content, grounded in wide and deep reading, thoughtfully written and judicious, Charles Turner's new book is a major addition to sociological theory... Its last sentence fittingly urges students and teachers to keep reading . For those unfamiliar with Turner's book, I add: put Investigating Sociological Theory at the top of your reading list
Peter Baehr
Canadian Journal of Sociology

Here at last is a book that conveys the drama, excitement, and human importance of sociological theory in a sophisticated yet accessible way. It will launch a thousand conversations in classes, and provide teachers with an opportunity to discuss the big life and historical questions, while at the same time teaching a lot of sociology and theory. The book is terrific. I have nothing but admiration for it
Stephen Turner
University of South Florida

In this authoritative and strikingly original book, Charles Turner demonstrates that sociological theory far from being some dry, boring meta-discourse of society is an ethically engaged enterprise, intimately connected to the arts of living in the contemporary world. Accessible to both students and seasoned practitioners, this book is at once a terrific defence and itself an elegant example of the continuing relevance and intellectual vitality of sociological theory. Turner's brilliant discussion thoroughly deserves to resonate across the discipline of sociological theory in both its European and north American versions
Thomas Osborne
University of Bristol

This is a splendid, extremely readable book which provides a master-class in how to play off one thinker against another in developing and presenting one's own perspective. It is in the grand tradition of Sorokin, Andreski and Mouzelis and should inspire generations of advanced undergraduates and graduate students, as well as being a brilliant contribution to the professional literature
William Outhwaite
Newcastle University

We must welcome fresh approaches that make a serious attempt at rethinking the traditional textbook package....CharlesTurner's Investigating Sociological Theory is such an attempt...Turner has managed, let us hope, to put an end to those silly introductory books, which have plagued the field for such a long time. Future introductory books to sociological theory will hopefully be written with more sense and sensibility. This could be no mean achievement
Andreas Hess
History of Human Sciences

Author Bio

Charles Turner is Associate Professor of Sociology and Co-Director of the Social Theory Centre at Warwick University. He graduated from Durham University and completed his PhD at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His research and teaching interests have also taken him to the Bavarian Academy of Sciences, Munich (1990-1991), the University of Warsaw (1992-1994) and the Jagiellonian University, Krakow (1999). His publications include Modernity and Politics in the Work of Max Weber (Routledge, 1992) and a collection edited with Robert Fine entitled Social Theory After the Holocaust (LUP, 2000). He teaches undergraduate modules in Theoretical Ideas in Sociology and Contemporary Social Theory and the masters options Sociology of Modernity and the Idea of Europe. His research interests are in the areas of social and political theory, the sociology of collective memory and history, and the future of Europe. He is co-director of the Centre for Social Theory.