In the fifth volume in the Studies in American Sociology Series, Stanford M. Lyman offers commentaries on and critiques of postmodernism, poststructuralism, and deconstruction, posing questions concerning theoretical and epistemological problems arising from what appears to be a "nouvelle vague." Postmodernism, poststructuralism, and deconstructionism are interrelated aspects of the newest theoretical development in sociology and the social sciences. This new wave of thought challenges virtually all paradigms currently in use. In this, his fifth volume in the Studies in American Sociology Series, Stanford M. Lyman offers commentaries on and critiques of this new perspective, posing questions concerning theoretical and epistemological problems arising from what appears to be a nouvelle vague. Among the basic themes and issues explored are the allegation that modernity has defaulted on the promise of the Enlightenment; the question of whether the rational basis for knowledge and action is still valid; the controversy over the place of metanarratives and macrosociological outlooks; and newer concerns over race, gender, sexual preferences, the self, and the "Other." Professor Lyman provides empirically based and historically specific analyses of the relation of the race question to the problem of otherness and to the legal construction of racial identity in American court proceedings. Focusing on the issues of citizenship affecting European, Middle Eastern, and Asian immigrants; African Americans; and the special cases of the Chinese and Native Americans, he relates major public problems to the modern as well as the postmodern perspectives on justice. The debate over assimilation and multiculturalism, the dynamics of gender-specific emotions as expressed in six decades of Hollywood films, and the postmodern approach to deviance are each examined. He also offers proposals for a social science attuned to, but critical of, postmodernism and poststructuralism. Such a sociology might offer a perspective that treats the drama of social relations in the routine as well as the remarkable aspects of everyday life. Professor Lyman provides not only a new understanding of postmodernism but also a program of how to proceed with respect to its challenges.

More than 50 years ago, C. Wright Mills heralded a new age for sociology for the 1960s and beyond. Yet his forward-looking vision also foretold some of the social conditions we associate, more recently, with postmodern society. This intellectual biography of Mills emphasizes early life experiences that shaped Mills's expansive vision of the future, just as Kerr develops, from Mills, tools for confronting current and looming problems. Drawing upon little-known documents, Kerr expands our knowledge about this leading 20th-century sociologist, and shows how forward-looking Millsian scholarship can enhance the endeavors of sociology today.

Containing more than fifty essays by major literary scholars, International Postmodernism divides into four main sections. The volume starts off with a section of eight introductory studies dealing with the subject from different points of view followed by a section that deals with postmodernism in other arts than literature, while a third section discusses renovations of narrative genres and other strategies and devices in postmodernist writing. The final and fourth section deals with the reception and processing of postmodernism in different parts of the world. Three important aspects add to the special character of International Postmodernism: The consistent distinction between postmodernity and postmodernism; equal attention to the making and diffusion of postmodernism and the workings of literature in general; and the focus on the text and the reader (i.e., the reader's knowledge, experience, interests, and competence) as crucial factors in text interpretation. This comprehensive study does not expressly focus on American postmodernism, although American interpretations of postmodernism are a major point of reference. The recognition that varying literary and cultural conditions in this world are bound to produce endless varieties of postmodernism made the editors, Hans Bertens and Douwe Fokkema, opt for the title International Postmodernism.

Appropriate as a supplemental text to courses in Sociology. Providing an overview grounded in research. Developments in Sociology focuses on the major areas of theoretical, methodological and substantive developments in sociology. Each author takes a field of study in which they are an acknowledged expert and highlights the way in which the subject has developed over the last fifty years.

The social sciences are still predominantly modernist disciplines and, as such, products of the Enlightenment. Recent challenges to Enlightenment thinking thus carry with them the potential or threat to transform the social sciences radically. Postmodernism and the Social Sciences examines the nature and potential of this postmodernist challenge in each of the major social sciences. Starting with the practices of particular disciplines and proceeding to matters of shared concern, the essays provide an accessible discussion of the contemporary impact of postmodernism on social scientific thought.

Essential reading for all those concerned with contemporary theorizing of organization, this important and thought-provoking volume explores the implications of postmodernist/poststructuralist thinking for organizations and organizational analysis. The book introduces the concepts underpinning a postmodern organizational analysis, contrasting modern and postmodern forms of explanation and addressing the distinctions between postmodernity and postmodernism. Succeeding chapters then examine and assess the interplay of major postmodernist themes - such as deconstruction, desire, difference, pluralism and relativism - with key topics of organizational analysis and research. The final section is one of critique, as its authors variously argue that postmodernism fails adequately to address the realities of power, control and change in a globalizing world.

Postmodernism is frequently described as dealing a death-blow to sociology. This book, however, argues that it is a mistake to conceive postmodernism in terms of a fatal attack upon what sociologists do. The contributors locate the identity of sociology after' postmodernism as a contested site which opens up the possibility of re-imagining the enterprise of sociology. They show how this re-imagination might be conducted and trace some of the key potential consequences.

This introduction to postmodernism offers a comprehensive examination of postmodern theory and its application to the study of society. It surveys the work of theorists and explores the potential and limits of postmodern analysis across key areas of development, including deconstruction, semiotics, the new ethnography and feminist theory. This guide should be suitable as an undergraduate text for social and cultural theory courses and should appeal to students of social research methods.

Joining the modern-postmodern debate, this book suggests that the polarizing polemics of the radical postmodernists who once dominated the discussion have given way to a new critical postmodernism characterized by dialogue, accommodation, and synthesis. A comprehensive survey, Negotiating Postmodernism also marks the arrival of a powerful, critical presence on the scene, one that advances the idea of a late modern-postmodern social and cultural transition.

The Routledge Companion to Contemporary Japanese Social Theory breaks new ground in providing a detailed, systematic appraisal of the major traditions of social theory prominent in Japan today – from theories of identity and individualization to globalization studies. The volume introduces readers to the rich diversity of social-theoretical critique in contemporary Japanese social theory. The editors have brought together some of the most influential Japanese social scientists to assess current trends in Japanese social theory, including Kazuhisa Nishihara, Aiko Kashimura, Masahiro Ogino, Yumiko Ehara and Kiyomitsu Yui. The volume also contains dialogues with these Japanese contributors from authoritative Western social theorists – including, among others, Axel Honneth, Roland Robertson, Bryan S. Turner, Charles Lemert and Anthony Elliott – to reflect on such developments. The result is an exciting, powerful set of intellectual exchanges. The book introduces, contextualizes and critiques social theories in the broader context of Japanese society, culture and politics – with particular emphasis upon Japanese engagements and revisions of major traditions of social thought. Divided into two sections, the book surveys traditions of social thought in Japanese social science and presents the major social issues facing contemporary Japan. The book will appeal to students and scholars of sociology, social theory, critical theory, psychoanalysis, risk, gender studies, feminist studies, self and identity studies, media studies and cultural studies.