Self, Social Structure, and Beliefs
Explorations in Sociology
$65.00, £38.95 hardcover
978-0-520-24136-7
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$25.95, £14.95 paperback
978-0-520-24137-4
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286 pages, 6 x 9 inches, 2 tables
September 2004, Available worldwide
Categories: Sociology; Anthropology; American Studies
September 2004, Available worldwide
Categories: Sociology; Anthropology; American Studies
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"For nearly fifty years, Neil Smelser has been one of the world's most distinguished sociologists. His intellectual range is remarkable, and so too his influence over the discipline. The essays collected here are a fitting tribute precisely because they are intellectually rich, diverse, thought-provoking and unafraid of controversy. They offer commanding views of a dozen subfields, syntheses of important lines of work, and agendas for the future."—Craig Calhoun, President, Social Science Research Council
"If the legacy of scholars is measured by the work of their students, Neil Smelser has done very well indeed. The great range of topics covered in this volume is a testament to his sociological breath. This collection should be read for what it reveals about the many dimensions of an intellectual life well lived, as well as for what it teaches about the past and the present of our discipline."—Michele Lamont, co- author of Rethinking Comparative Cultural Sociology: Repertoires of Evaluation in France and the United States
"A brilliant collection of essays giving expression to the diversity and depth of Neil Smelser's scholarly and intellectual achievement. The authors show how Smelser's multidisciplinary synthesis represents a summary of the achievements of economics, psychology and sociology in the second half of the twentieth century."—Bryan S. Turner, author of The Body and Society
"If the legacy of scholars is measured by the work of their students, Neil Smelser has done very well indeed. The great range of topics covered in this volume is a testament to his sociological breath. This collection should be read for what it reveals about the many dimensions of an intellectual life well lived, as well as for what it teaches about the past and the present of our discipline."—Michele Lamont, co- author of Rethinking Comparative Cultural Sociology: Repertoires of Evaluation in France and the United States
"A brilliant collection of essays giving expression to the diversity and depth of Neil Smelser's scholarly and intellectual achievement. The authors show how Smelser's multidisciplinary synthesis represents a summary of the achievements of economics, psychology and sociology in the second half of the twentieth century."—Bryan S. Turner, author of The Body and Society
Teacher, scholar, and leader, Neil Smelser stands as an iconic figure in sociology in the second half of the twentieth century. The essays in this volume, written by prominent scholars from all walks of the social sciences, reveal the range and depth of Smelser's influence—and his substantial contributions to diverse fields such as British history, social change, collective behavior, higher education, the economy, and psychoanalysis.
Contributors: Jeffrey C. Alexander, Nancy J. Chodorow, Burton R. Clark, Yiannis Gabriel, Arlie Russell Hochschild, James M. Jasper, Christian Joppke, Alberto Martinelli, Gary T. Marx, Lyn Spillman, Piotr Sztompka, R. Stephen Warner, Christine L. Williams, Robert Wuthnow, Viviana A. Zelizer
Contributors: Jeffrey C. Alexander, Nancy J. Chodorow, Burton R. Clark, Yiannis Gabriel, Arlie Russell Hochschild, James M. Jasper, Christian Joppke, Alberto Martinelli, Gary T. Marx, Lyn Spillman, Piotr Sztompka, R. Stephen Warner, Christine L. Williams, Robert Wuthnow, Viviana A. Zelizer
1. Mastering Ambivalence:
Neil Smelser as a Sociologist of Synthesis
Jeffrey C. Alexander, Gary T. Marx, and Christine L. Williams
PART I: SELF
Introduction: Christine L. Williams
2. The Sociological Eye and the Psychoanalytic Ear: Nancy J. Chodorow
3. The Commodity Frontier: Arlie Russell Hochschild
4. The Glass Cage: Flexible Work, Fragmented Consumption, Fragile Selves
Yiannis Gabriel
PART II: SOCIAL STRUCTURE
Introduction: Gary T. Marx
5. Rational Choice and Sociology: Alberto Martinelli
6. Enlisting Smelser's Theory of Ambivalence to Maintain Progress in Sociology of Religion's New Paradigm: R. Stephen Warner
7. Circuits of Commerce: Viviana A. Zelizer
8. Trust as an Aspect of Social Structure: Robert Wuthnow
9. The Organizational Foundations of University Capability: Differentiation and Competition in the Academic Sector of Society
Burton R. Clark
PART III: BELIEFS
Introduction: Jeffrey C. Alexander
10. Primordial Beliefs and Immigration Policy: The Case of Britain's Patrials
Christian Joppke
11. Causal Reasoning, Historical Logic, and Sociological Explanation: Lyn Spillman
12. Intellectual Cycles of Social Movement Research: From Psychoanalysis to Culture?
James M. Jasper
13. Shaping Sociological Imagination: The Importance of Theory
Piotr Sztompka
List of Contributors
Index
Neil Smelser as a Sociologist of Synthesis
Jeffrey C. Alexander, Gary T. Marx, and Christine L. Williams
PART I: SELF
Introduction: Christine L. Williams
2. The Sociological Eye and the Psychoanalytic Ear: Nancy J. Chodorow
3. The Commodity Frontier: Arlie Russell Hochschild
4. The Glass Cage: Flexible Work, Fragmented Consumption, Fragile Selves
Yiannis Gabriel
PART II: SOCIAL STRUCTURE
Introduction: Gary T. Marx
5. Rational Choice and Sociology: Alberto Martinelli
6. Enlisting Smelser's Theory of Ambivalence to Maintain Progress in Sociology of Religion's New Paradigm: R. Stephen Warner
7. Circuits of Commerce: Viviana A. Zelizer
8. Trust as an Aspect of Social Structure: Robert Wuthnow
9. The Organizational Foundations of University Capability: Differentiation and Competition in the Academic Sector of Society
Burton R. Clark
PART III: BELIEFS
Introduction: Jeffrey C. Alexander
10. Primordial Beliefs and Immigration Policy: The Case of Britain's Patrials
Christian Joppke
11. Causal Reasoning, Historical Logic, and Sociological Explanation: Lyn Spillman
12. Intellectual Cycles of Social Movement Research: From Psychoanalysis to Culture?
James M. Jasper
13. Shaping Sociological Imagination: The Importance of Theory
Piotr Sztompka
List of Contributors
Index
Cultural Trauma and Collective Identity, by Jeffrey C. Alexander, Ron Eyerman, Bernhard Giesen, Neil J. Smelser, and Piotr Sztompka
The Social Edges of Psychoanalysis, by Neil J. Smelser
Problematics of Sociology: The Georg Simmel Lectures, 1995, by Neil J. Smelser
Social Paralysis and Social Change: British Working-Class Education in the Nineteenth Century, by Neil J. Smelser
The Social Importance of Self-Esteem, by Andrew Mecca, Neil J. Smelser, and John Vasconcellos, editors
The Social Edges of Psychoanalysis, by Neil J. Smelser
Problematics of Sociology: The Georg Simmel Lectures, 1995, by Neil J. Smelser
Social Paralysis and Social Change: British Working-Class Education in the Nineteenth Century, by Neil J. Smelser
The Social Importance of Self-Esteem, by Andrew Mecca, Neil J. Smelser, and John Vasconcellos, editors