Public Sociology : Fifteen Eminent Sociologists Debate Politics and the Profession in the Twenty-first Century

In 2004, Michael Burawoy, speaking as president of the American Sociological Association, generated far-reaching controversy when he issued an ambitious and impassioned call for a'public sociology.'Burawoy argued that sociology should speak beyond the university, engaging with social movements and deepening an understanding of the historical and social context in which they exist. In this volume, renowned sociologists come together to debate the perils and the potentials of Burawoy's challenge. Contributors: Andrew Abbott, Michael Burawoy, Patricia Hill Collins, Barbara Ehrenreich, Evelyn Nakano Glenn, Sharon Hays, Douglas Massey, Joya Misra, Orlando Patterson, Frances Fox Piven, Lynn Smith-Lovin, Judith Stacey, Arthur Stinchcombe, Alain Touraine, Immanuel Wallerstein, William Julius Wilson, Robert Zussman For Public Sociology / Michael Burawoy -- Public Sociology And The End Of Society / Alain Touraine -- Stalled At The Altar? : Conflict, Hierarchy, And Compartmentalization In Burawoy's Public Sociology / Sharon Hays -- If I Were The Goddess Of Sociological Things / Judith Stacey -- Going Public : Doing The Sociology That Had No Name / Patricia Hill Collins -- Speaking To Publics / William Julius Wilson -- Do We Need A Public Sociology? : It Depends On What You Mean By Sociology / Lynn Smith-lovin -- Speaking Truth To The Public, And Indirectly To Power / Arthur L. Stinchcombe -- The Strength Of Weak Politics / Douglas S. Massey -- From Public Sociology To Politicized Sociologist / Frances Fox Piven -- The Sociologist And The Public Sphere / Immanuel Wallerstein -- About Public Sociology / Orlando Patterson -- For Humanist Sociology / Andrew Abbott -- Whose Public Sociology? : The Subaltern Speaks, But Who Is Listening? / Evelyn Nakano Glenn -- A Journalist's Plea / Barbara Ehrenreich -- The Field Of Sociology : Its Power And Its Promise / Michael Burawoy. Edited By Dan Clawson ... [et Al.]. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Contents 6 Acknowledgments 8 INTRODUCTORY 10 Introduction 12 For Public Sociology 32 INSTITUTIONALIZING PUBLIC SOCIOLOGY 74 Public Sociology and the End of Society 76 Stalled at the Altar? Conflict, Hierarchy, andCompartmentalization in Burawoy’s Public Sociology 88 If I Were the Goddess of Sociological Things 100 Going Public: Doing the Sociology That Had No Name 110 POLITICS AND THE PROFESSION 124 Speaking to Publics 126 Do We Need a Public Sociology? It Depends on WhatYou Mean by Sociology 133 Speaking Truth to the Public, and Indirectly to Power 144 The Strength of Weak Politics 154 From Public Sociology to Politicized Sociologist 167 FALSE DISTINCTIONS: CONCEPTUAL RESERVATIONS 176 The Sociologist and the Public Sphere 178 About Public Sociology 185 For Humanist Sociology 204 INTERDISCIPLINARITY 220 Whose Public Sociology? The Subaltern Speaks,but Who Is Listening? 222 A Journalist’s Plea 240 REJOINDER 248 The Field of Sociology: Its Power and Its Promise 250 Editors and Contributors 268 Index 272 In 2004, Michael Burawoy, speaking as president of the American Sociological Association, generated far-reaching controversy when he issued an ambitious and impassioned call for a "public sociology." Burawoy argued that sociology should speak beyond the university, engaging with social movements and deepening an understanding of the historical and social context in which they exist. In this volume, renowned sociologists come together to debate the perils and the potentials of Burawoy's challenge. Andrew Abbott, Michael Burawoy, Patricia Hill Collins, Barbara Ehrenreich, Evelyn Nakano Glenn, Sharon Hays, Douglas Massey, Joya Misra, Orlando Patterson, Frances Fox Piven, Lynn Smith-Lovin, Judith Stacey, Arthur Stinchcombe, Alain Touraine, Immanuel Wallerstein, William Julius Wilson, Robert Zussman In 2004, Michael Burawoy, speaking as president of the American Sociological Association, generated far-reaching controversy when he issued an ambitious and impassioned call for a 'public sociology'. He argued that sociology should speak beyond the university. This book features the debate on the perils and the potentials of his challenge.