Social theory for beginners

Abstract

Introduction: who is this book for and how do I use it? What is social theory? Where did social theory come from? Emile Durkheim and the coming of industrial society Karl Marx, Capitalism and Revolution Max Weber, Rational Capitalism and Social Action Talcott Parsons, Functionalism and the Social System Social Interactionism and the real lives of social actors Western Marxism, Antonio Gramsci and the Frankfurt School Language, structure, meaning Discourse and power: Post-structuralist social theory Feminist social theory Reviving theories of modernity: Habermas, Giddens and Bourdieu Theories of Modernity and Post-modernity Reflexive modernization: the global dimension and cultural theory The boundary problem in contemporary social theory.