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For forty years, in a variety of books and articles, Gerhard Lenski has become the most influential proponent of ecological and evolutionary explanations of human societies, their development and transformations, from the Stone Age to the present. In his newest book, Lenski offers a succinct but comprehensive statement of the full body of his theory followed by demonstration of how it can be used to generate new and valuable insights when applied to a set of highly diverse issues. These include debates concerning the origin of ancient Israel and its distinctive culture, the rise of the West in the modern era, the highly varied trajectories of development of Third World nations in recent decades, and the failure of Marxist efforts to transform society in the Soviet Union and elsewhere. In the concluding chapter, Lenski discusses a number of other issues and areas where ecological-evolutionary theory may be fruitfully applied in the future.
Power and Privilege seeks to answer the central question of the field of social stratification: Who gets what and why? Using a dialectical view of the development of thought in the discipline, Gerhard Lenski describes the outlines of an emerging synthesis of theories. He shows that perspectives as diverse and contradictory as those of Marx, Spencer, Sumner, Veblen, Mosca, Pareto, Sorokin, Parsons, and Dahrendorf are parts of an evolving and systematic body of theory.
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Using a dialectical view of the development of thought in the discipline, Gerhard Lenski describes the outlines of an emerging synthesis of theories.
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Derived in part from Joseph F. Healey’s best-selling text Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class, this accessible 10-chapter text teaches concepts and theories through current, engaging topics, such as the Obama election and presidency and the economic recession. An analysis of minority-dominant relations is presented clearly, reinforced through case studies, and enhanced through gender and comparative perspectives. Particular emphasis is given to the history of race and ethnicity in the United States with more coverage than any other brief text.
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Social theorists dwell on the canonical works of Marx, Weber, and Durkheim but little on the theories of the major contemporary macrotheorists. This book fills this gap with a focus on the work of four modern theorists who have taken on the larger questions spawned by classical social theory. C. Wright Mills, Marvin Harris, Immanuel Wallerstein, and Gerhard Lenski have examined such phenomena and processes as the rise and impact of capitalism; the centralization and enlargement of authority; inequality; and the historical intensification of production and populations. Borrowing what is useful from the classics as well as relying on contemporary practitioners and empirical evidence, each theorist adds his own insights and interpretations in constructing a comprehensive perspective of sociocultural stability and change. This book fully synthesizes and documents each perspective, using language and examples that resonate with the general reader. A short biography on each theorist is also provided.
Written by award-winning scholar Jonathan Turner, Theoretical Sociology: 1830 to the Present covers new and emerging aspects of sociological theory and examines the significant contributions of both modern and founding theorists. Nine sections present detailed analyses of key theories and paradigms, including functionalism, evolutionary theory, conflict theory, critical theory, exchange theory, interactionist theory, and structuralism. Despite the in-depth discussions of theorists and their contributions to the field, the text is concise and focused, a perfect resource for readers seeking to develop a deeper understanding of contemporary and classical sociological theory.
Starting where Max Weber's The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism left off, John E. Tropman develops the idea that there is another religious-based ethic permeating society, a Catholic ethic. Where Weber proposed that a Protestant ethic supported the development of capitalism, Tropman argues that there is a Catholic ethic as well, and that it is more caring and community-oriented. Weber's notion of the Protestant ethic has become widely accepted, but until Tropman's work, beginning in the mid-1980s, there had been no discussion of another, religious-based ethic. He suggests that if the Protestant ethic is an "achievement" ethic, the Catholic ethic is a "helping" one. Tropman outli...