Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Pages: 368
•
Trim: 6¾ x 9¼
978-0-7425-1891-9 • Hardback • April 2006 • $154.00 • (£119.00)
978-0-7425-1892-6 • Paperback • April 2006 • $63.00 • (£48.00)
978-1-4616-4583-2 • eBook • April 2006 • $59.50 • (£46.00)
Mark A. Schneider is associate professor of sociology at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.
Chapter 1 Theories and Theorizing
Chapter 2 Karl Marx and Capitalism
Chapter 3 Historical Materialism and Its Legacy
Chapter 4 Max Weber and Capitalism
Chapter 5 Max Weber and Analytic Typologies
Chapter 6 Émile Durkheim on the Division of Labor and Suicide
Chapter 7 Émile Durkheim and Functionalism
Chapter 8 G. H. Mead and Symbolic Interaction
Well organized and clearly written, this strong book avoids the common trap of only addressing the social-historical analysis of theorists. [Schneider] focuses on the merger between theory and methods and thereby heightens the focus on how sociologists think and do their work. Recommended.
— Theodore Wagenaar, Miami University of Ohio
For Mark Schneider, "theory" becomes a verb. Instead of forcing students to memorize ancient definitions, this text provides the conceptual tools for them to do sociology. His grasp of the classics is solid and sure, and the prose is vivid enough to engage even the most reluctant student. If you desire a book that displays how Durkheim, Marx, Weber and others formulated their problems and worked their way methodically to some very famous conclusions, look no further.
— Thomas F. Gieryn, Indiana University
Schneider's achievement is to maintain a smooth-reading clarity throughout a presentation of astonishing and complex detail. Eschewing intellectual history and biography in favor of underlying theoretical substance and logic, he lays out the classic ideas of Marx, Weber, Durkheim and their successors. For the student who wants to understand theorizing, and not just theorists, Schneider's book is an invaluable guide.
— Daniel F. Chambliss, Hamilton College
Clearly written, sophisticated, and focused on student understanding and skill development, this primer fills a genuine gap in the theory texts available. Schneider offers us a range of persuasive examples, a tone that engages students without talking down to them, motivating explanations of classical theorists' important ideas, graphs and figures that are enormously creative and helpful, a template for practicing theorizing skills, and footnotes that actually enhance rather than distract. The modeling of effective pedagogy and love of the discipline make this book a terrific contribution.
— Diane Pike, Augsburg College
1. Treats theory as an occasion to acquire skills rather than information about the intellectual history of sociology. (Most theory texts give too much attention to the social and intellectual contexts of theories. This is information students will soon forget.)
2. Emphasizes the detailed logical structure of the theories and encourages visualizing relations among their elements. (Most theory texts present theories vaguely and discursively. Only Turner is strong on visualization.)
3. Utilizes the standard scientific definition of theory in order to clarify what theories are and routinize the principles by which they are constructed. (Most texts leave the concept of theory so vague that students remain puzzled about what sociologists mean by it.)
4. Distinguishes theories from paradigms (as guides to formulating theories) and from causal narrative (as explanations of specific cases). (Many theory texts mistake paradigms for theories, and treat any sort of explanation as "theoretical." The latter practice fails to distinguish sociology from history.)
5. Rigorously evaluates the theories, encouraging a critical attitude toward them. (Many theory texts present them as icons of intellectual history that need not be criticized.)
6.