Contemporary issues in social theory

This module is organised around a number of central debates and controversies in classical and contemporary social theory. A key concern of the module is to explore not only the ways in which sociological research strategies and theories have emerged but also the extent to which they permit us to analyse and explain particular social phenomena. 

For each session there is a list of essential readings, and it will be important that you read and grapple with some of the main texts on a weekly basis, so that you can follow the core themes of the module.

This module is a core module for the MA in Sociology and an elective module on the MSc in Social Research Methods and other MA courses.

Learning objectives

1. You will learn to make sense of the main currents and controversies in classical and contemporary social theory.
2. You will be able to place contemporary social theories in relation to the key traditions of classical sociological thought.
3. You will acquire an in-depth understanding of the main differences between modern and postmodern social thought.
4. You will be required to problematise both the conceptual and the empirical implications of recent sociological debates in the context of contemporary society.
5. You will reflect upon the linkages between theories and research strategies in contemporary sociology.

Sample reading list

• Baert, Patrick and Filipe Carreira da Silva (2010 [1998]) Social Theory in the Twentieth Century and Beyond, 2nd Edition, Cambridge: Polity Press.
• Calhoun, Craig, Joseph Gerteis, James Moody, Steven Pfaff and Indermohan Virk (eds.) (2007 [2002]) Contemporary Sociological Theory, 2nd Edition, Oxford: Blackwell.
• Callinicos, Alex (2007 [1999]) Social Theory: A Historical Introduction, 2nd Edition, Cambridge: Polity Press.
• Craib, Ian (1992 [1984]) Modern Social Theory: From Parsons to Habermas, 2nd Edition, London: Harvester Wheatsheaf.
• Craib, Ian (1997) Classical Social Theory: An Introduction to the Thought of Marx, Weber, Durkheim, and Simmel, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Giddens, Anthony (1996 [1971]) Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: An Analysis of the Writings of Marx, Durkheim and Max Weber, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Ritzer, George (ed.) (2008 [1988]) Sociological Theory, 7th Edition, Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
• Ritzer, George (ed.) (2009 [2002]) Contemporary Sociological Theory and its Classical Roots: The Basics, 3rd Edition, Boston, Mass.: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
• Ritzer, George and Barry Smart (eds.) (2001) Handbook of Social Theory, London: Sage.
• Seidman, Steven (2004 [1994]) Contested Knowledge: Social Theory Today, 3rd Edition, Malden, MA: Blackwell.
• Susen, Simon (2007) The Foundations of the Social: Between Critical Theory and Reflexive Sociology, Oxford: Bardwell Press.
• Turner, Bryan S. (ed.) (2000 [1996]) The Blackwell Companion to Social Theory, 2nd Edition, Oxford: Blackwell.