Steven Loyal

Introducing you to the most important thinkers and schools of thought in contemporary sociological theory – from Parsons and Merton to the Frankfurt School to Foucault, Bourdieu, Giddens and Hochschild – this accessible textbook firmly locates key ideas in social, political and historical context. By doing so, it helps you to understand the development of central sociological concepts and how they can help us understand the contemporary world. The book includes: Lively biographical sections so you can get to know each thinker Clear and easy-to-understand accounts of each theorist’s arguments - and the most common criticismsKey concept boxes highlighting the most influential ideas This comprehensive textbook brings the diverse field of contemporary sociological theory to life. Essential reading for all students of Sociology and Sociological Theory.

Introducing the founders of sociological theory – from Marx, Weber, Durkheim and Martineau through to Simmel, DuBois, Mead and others – this accessible textbook locates each thinker within their own social, political and historical context. By doing so, it helps readers to understand the development of central sociological concepts and how they can help us understand the contemporary world. The book includes: Lively biographical sections to help readers get to know each thinkerClear and easy-to-understand accounts of each theorist’s arguments - and the most common criticismsKey concept boxes highlighting the most influential ideas This comprehensive, enlightening text brings the rich and diverse field of classical sociological theory to life.

Introducing you to the most important thinkers and schools of thought in contemporary sociological theory – from Parsons and Merton to the Frankfurt School to Foucault, Bourdieu, Giddens and Hochschild – this accessible textbook firmly locates key ideas in social, political and historical context. By doing so, it helps you to understand the development of central sociological concepts and how they can help us understand the contemporary world. The book includes: Lively biographical sections so you can get to know each thinker Clear and easy-to-understand accounts of each theorist’s arguments - and the most common criticismsKey concept boxes highlighting the most influential ideas This comprehensive textbook brings the diverse field of contemporary sociological theory to life. Essential reading for all students of Sociology and Sociological Theory.

Introducing the founders of sociological theory – from Marx, Weber, Durkheim and Martineau through to Simmel, DuBois, Mead and others – this accessible textbook locates each thinker within their own social, political and historical context. By doing so, it helps readers to understand the development of central sociological concepts and how they can help us understand the contemporary world. The book includes: Lively biographical sections to help readers get to know each thinkerClear and easy-to-understand accounts of each theorist’s arguments - and the most common criticismsKey concept boxes highlighting the most influential ideas This comprehensive, enlightening text brings the rich and diverse field of classical sociological theory to life.

This book aims to account for the reception, treatment and sometimes, eventual deportation, of asylum seekers in Ireland, by analysing how they are framed and dealt with by the Irish state. Both historically and theoretically grounded, it will discuss contemporary immigration policies and issues in light of the overall social, historical, and economic development of Irish society and state immigration policy. State Power and Asylum Seekers in Ireland will be of interest to scholars and students in the fields of historical sociology, sociological theory and social policy, with a focus on discourses of patterns of European migration, the changing role and function of the state and its policies, and the psycho-social experience of asylum seekers.

This book aims to account for the reception, treatment and sometimes, eventual deportation, of asylum seekers in Ireland, by analysing how they are framed and dealt with by the Irish state. Both historically and theoretically grounded, it will discuss contemporary immigration policies and issues in light of the overall social, historical, and economic development of Irish society and state immigration policy. State Power and Asylum Seekers in Ireland will be of interest to scholars and students in the fields of historical sociology, sociological theory and social policy, with a focus on discourses of patterns of European migration, the changing role and function of the state and its policies, and the psycho-social experience of asylum seekers.

This book critically examines Pierre Bourdieu's theory of the state by assessing its theoretical and empirical value. Steven Loyal expertly situates Bourdieu's work within the context of both classical and modern theories of the state, providing a comprehensive frame of reference. Finally, Loyal discusses Bourdieu's theoretical limitations and projects how his theory of the state might be utilized in the future.

The book is a sociological analysis of immigration in Ireland. It is the first major comprehensive study of labour and asylum immigration into Irish society. From the Great Irish Famine until the 1990s Ireland was historically a country of entrenched emigration like no other. In 1996 it became the last of the old EU 15 states to become a country of net immigration. From a relatively homogenous country characterised by Catholicism and rural development it has become one of the most globalised countries in the world containing over 188 different nationalities in the space of a decade. This book blends theoretical and empirical analysis to examine both the process of immigration and how it has been interpreted by various social actors. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative data as well as sociology and political economy it provides a broad and insightful evaluation of the transformations wrought by immigration on Irish society. The book will appeal to undergraduates, postgraduates and those readers who want both an introduction to immigration and an in-depth analysis of its repercussions for Irish society.

The book is a sociological analysis of immigration in Ireland. It is the first major comprehensive study of labour and asylum immigration into Irish society. From the Great Irish Famine until the 1990s Ireland was historically a country of entrenched emigration like no other. In 1996 it became the last of the old EU 15 states to become a country of net immigration. From a relatively homogenous country characterised by Catholicism and rural development it has become one of the most globalised countries in the world containing over 188 different nationalities in the space of a decade. This book blends theoretical and empirical analysis to examine both the process of immigration and how it has been interpreted by various social actors. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative data as well as sociology and political economy it provides a broad and insightful evaluation of the transformations wrought by immigration on Irish society. The book will appeal to undergraduates, postgraduates and those readers who want both an introduction to immigration and an in-depth analysis of its repercussions for Irish society.

Anthony Giddens is one of the most famous and influential sociologists of recent decades. Largely credited with the concept of the 'Third Way', he continues to be a key advisor to Tony Blair, and is generally presented as an exponent of liberalism and socialism. He was the 1999 BBC Reith lecturer and he has been Professor of Sociology at Cambridge University since 1986. This original and controversial book provides an excellent introduction to Giddens' work, covering the wide range of his writing from theory to self-reflexivity, modernity and politics, placing them all within the illuminating framework of a historical context. Steven Loyal argues that Giddens' writing has always embodied a political and ethical position, one that has changed considerably over the years and is best understood through the social context in which it was written. Giddens' work in the 1970s attempted to marry liberalism and socialism, but, following the collapse of Communism in the 1990 East-European revolutions, his worldview became liberal rather than socialist, and his later work on reflexivity and the 'Third Way' embodies this. Loyal explores how this world-view accounts for many tensions and failures in Giddens' theory and that, overall, his work is fundamentally flawed.

Anthony Giddens is one of the most famous and influential sociologists of recent decades. Largely credited with the concept of the 'Third Way', he continues to be a key advisor to Tony Blair, and is generally presented as an exponent of liberalism and socialism. This book provides a controversial introduction to Giddens' work, covering the wide range of his writing from theory to self-reflexivity, modernity and politics, placing them all within the illuminating framework of a historical context. Giddens' writing has always embodied a political and ethical position, one that has changed considerably over the years and is best understood through the social context in which it was written. His work in the 1970s attempted to marry liberalism and socialism, but, following the collapse of Communism in the 1990 East-European revolutions, his world view became liberal rather than socialist, and his later work on reflexivity and the 'Third Way' embodies this. Loyal explores how this world-view accounts for many tensions and failures in Giddens' theory and that, overall, his work is fundamentally flawed.