Sociology in Bangladesh

Abstract

Sociology in Bangladesh NAZRUL ISLAM University of Dhaka duregstr@bangZa. net through a period of change. While new topics are being assimilated into the old academic institutions, Marxism is once more demonstrating its great adaptability and power of diversification. The situation also has changed in the crucial areas of textbook and manual publishing: The number of books devoted to sociology doubled between 1995 and 1996, and the list of books in the field grew in that year from 300 to 400 titles. Most of these focus on the social and economic problems of transforming Russian society. In this respect, sociological knowledge is still being reproduced in the form of public discourse on subjects ranging from the establishment of power institutions, income distribution, poverty and well-being, and the social positions of the elite to regional communities and ethnic conflicts. During the last decade of the twentieth century, Russian sociology has developed under the aegis of growing diversification that involved, first of all, the founding of numerous institutions that collect and analyze current social and political trends, such as preelection and marketing polls. Without the resources for autonomous existence, academic sociology finds itself in an ambiguous position. It appears to be a prestigious intellectual pastime rather than a stable professional job. Nevertheless, the activities of the Russian sociological community are gradually being reoriented toward academic problems and away from their decades-long concern with the current political state of affairs. This book, which represents a broad spectrum of Russian social thought, is the first impottant attempt to provide an objective historical analysis of Russian sociology. It is, of course, not without shortcomings. The principal weakness of Sociology in Russia, however, is a result of the anthology form. Many essays overlap, and some contradict others. In any event, we await with great interest the enlarged and revised edition that is expected next year. Meanwhile, this volume would surely be useful in courses n Russian social thought.