Understanding Classical Sociology

Wes Sharrock has spent his entire career since 1965 in sociology until his retirement in 2017 at the University of Manchester. His main interests have been in the philosophy of social science and in ethnomethodology, and he has published widely on issues of sociological principle and empirical research in these areas.Wes has explored two central themes—the relevance of fieldwork and an understanding of ordinary language for an understanding of social practice and the respecification of social theory—pursuing them across a huge variety of settings, from ordinary scenes of everyday social life through to complex domains of practical action and reasoning in various academic and industrial work situations. An ethnomethodologist of international reputation, alongside his other contributions, Wes coedited with Mike Lynch the four-volume 2003 Sage collection Harold Garfinkel.

• IntroductionSociology′s Intellectual CharacterConclusionSelect Bibliography and Further ReadingKarl MarxBiography and Social BackgroundEarly Years: The Critique of Hegel′s IdealismTurning Hegel the Right Way UpThe Critique of Political EconomyThe Partnership with EngelsThe Materialist Conception of HistoryThe Priority of SocietyThe Material Basis of Social OrganisationEconomic Production and Social OrganisationThe Shaping of ConsciousnessThe Sources of Social ChangeThe Nature of Social ChangeSocial RevolutionThe Economic Sources of Social ChangeIssues of InterpretationChanges in the Nature of CapitalismConclusion: Marx′s LegacySelect Bibliography and Further ReadingMax WeberThe Early CareerWeber and Modern CapitalismThe Organisation of SocietyCapitalism, Rationality and Social ChangeThe Methodological WeberThe LegacySelect Bibliography and Further ReadingEmile DurkheimThe Study of Social ActionThe Reality of SocietyThe Unity of SocietyAutonomy and ConstraintThe Solidarity of SocietyThought and SocietyThe Diagnosis of SocietyThe AftermathSelect Bibliography and Further ReadingConclusionTowards a Postmodern Marx?The Durkheimian LegacyWhich Weber?Concluding Remarks