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  3. Talcott Parsons
  • Cited by 74
      • Uta Gerhardt, Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg, Germany
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    • Publisher:
      Cambridge University Press
      Publication date:
      09 October 2009
      10 October 2002
      ISBN:
      9780511527586
      9780521810227
      9780521174589
      DOI:
      https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511527586
      Dimensions:
      (228 x 152 mm)
      Weight & Pages:
      0.587kg, 336 Pages
      Dimensions:
      (229 x 152 mm)
      Weight & Pages:
      0.49kg, 334 Pages
      • Subjects:
      Social Theory, Sociology: General Interest, Sociology
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    • Selected: Digital
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    Subjects:
    Social Theory, Sociology: General Interest, Sociology
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    Book description

    The American sociologist Talcott Parsons was often accused of being an overly abstract, even apolitical thinker, remote in Harvard's ivory tower. The controversial Parsons, in fact, emulated his mentor, the venerable Max Weber, in at least two respects: as a scholar he practised Wertfreiheit (scientific professionalism) and as a political activist he worked for the preservation and expansion of democracy. In this text, Uta Gerhardt traces this double commitment and links Parsons's scholarship to his politics. Utilizing rich archival material, she examines four periods in Parsons's intellectual life in the context of American history and society. From the New Deal and the rise of German fascism to the Second World War, through the McCarthy era and the Civil Rights movement, Parsons's overriding agenda was to develop both a sociological understanding and a defense of the development of modern democracy.

    Reviews

    "Never before has such an illuminating analysis of Parsons been presented. Highly recommended." Choice

    "Gerhardt's study provides the most illuminating portrait we have of the distinctive sociological and political project that animated Parson's work." The Journal of American History

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