Synopsis
In writing this new introduction, the author has remained faithful to the aims of the previous volume that was published in 2008. The new volume has tracked some subsequent developments and reorientations in the subject which reflect social changes. As a result, the content of each chapter has been broadened and expanded. In updating the earlier volume, a decision was made to retain and rework the sections covering founding theory and early research since one of the aims of the book remains to provide a sense of how the subject has developed historically as a mirror of social change. Compared to the previous volume, the author has integrated a range of selective quotations. Also, to assist the reader in following up a broader range of resources, the original list of recommended books has been expanded into a short bibliography and key referencing has been provided. The author has approached this work with the aim of providing a manageable length and accessible introduction to sociology. The text concentrates more heavily than standard A level texts on guiding the reader to develop the psychological and intellectual qualities that are necessary to effectively approach the subject. It is pitched at GCE A Level and is aimed at the sociology student or general reader who is looking for an alternative to the standard texts. Based on this approach, the text caters for the following needs of sociology students and the general reader. It: offers an inroad into the subject at an introductory level which makes no assumptions about the reader’s prior knowledge in the subject; guides students / the reader through the process of breaking down preconceptions on the way that they view society and their own lives; leads the reader into appreciating the challenges that sociological thinking poses; provides a clear introduction to sociological concepts and theories and offers a challenging learning curve in constructing sociological approaches and insights.
Review
This second edition provides more than a standard introductory Sociology ‘cook-book’. Rather, in keeping with the ethos of the original 2008 edition, it guides, introduces, and gradually facilitates an incremental but lively and engaged understanding of some core sociological themes. The author manages this difficult task by not only covering a huge amount of material, but by sustaining a sociological narrative that asks the reader simply to look around their own social, cultural and political world. This is the defining strength of the text - its persistent but gentle development of a specific, intellectual curiosity, via the nurturing of critical sociological lenses. The author’s passion for the historical development of the subject is also clear. Oftentimes, for new students of the subject, there is little of practical import in the subject, and Pullinger’s text is a very welcome insurance policy against this. It maintains that as long as the appropriate kind of curiosity is developed - sociological questioning - then the appropriate analytical understanding can develop. Another welcome addition is that each chapter is prefaced by ‘The Sociological Challenge’ which is an explicit, brief discussion of the issues faced within that particular topic, and how Sociology might help. This sets the analytical tone, as the author gradually builds a conceptual, empirical and theoretical narrative for the reader to engage with. The author uses contemporary examples in the narrative, such as the education system, family, economic austerity, globalisation, unemployment and politics to carefully examine how - using concepts, theories and data - readers can learn to view the world from a different perspective. Again this situates Sociology in a contemporary milieu, and gives the reader some personal, social and intellectual purchase with which to start their own analyses. - Dr Harshad Keval, Senior Lecturer, Sociology, Canterbury Christ Church University.
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