Teaching Yourself Social Theory [Paperback]

`I have no hesitation in recommending Harris' text to students and teachers of social theory' - Sociology

This refreshing and accessible text demonstrates how social theory can be made into an intelligible discourse that touches upon key aspects of everyday life. The abstraction and formalism of much contemporary social theory is criticized as unnecessarily `scholastic' for the beginner. The author maintains that the main problems in studying the subject are not intrinsic to social theory, but derive from how the subject is taught as a university discipline. This lively book uses non-specialist terms to introduce more complex themes, and incorporates a Website with questions and reading guides to some of the classic works.

`Social theory is a very difficult subject to teach and it is one that students generally find hard to get to grips with. Teach Yourself Social Theory offers a highly original and comprehensive resource that will be welcomed by students and teachers alike. In an exceptionally wide-ranging text that discusses the classical and contemporary contributions to social theory that students need to know about Harris manages to address the complex issues intrinsic to the field with admirable clarity. From the opening chapters on Marxism and Functionalism to the later chapters on Feminism, Otherness, Foucault, and Postmodernism Teach Yourself Social Theory offers a thoughtful account of the distinctive features of the various perspectives empl£Á