Anthony Giddens - Sociology

1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Chapter 9
10. Chapter 10
11. Chapter 11
12. Chapter 13
13. Chapter 14
14. Chapter 15
15. Chapter 16
16. Chapter 17
17. Chapter 18
18. Chapter 19
19. Chapter 20
20. Chapter 22

1. Chapter 2
2. Chapter 3
3. Chapter 4
4. Chapter 6
5. Chapter 8
6. Chapter 9
7. Chapter 22

1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Chapter 9
10. Chapter 10
11. Chapter 11
12. Chapter 12
13. Chapter 13
14. Chapter 14
15. Chapter 15
16. Chapter 16
17. Chapter 17
18. Chapter 18
19. Chapter 19
20. Chapter 20
21. Chapter 21
22. Chapter 22

1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 3
3. Chapter 4
4. Chapter 5
5. Chapter 6
6. Chapter 7
7. Chapter 8
8. Chapter 9
9. Chapter 10
10. Chapter 11
11. Chapter 12
12. Chapter 13
13. Chapter 14
14. Chapter 15
15. Chapter 16
16. Chapter 17
17. Chapter 18
18. Chapter 19
19. Chapter 20
20. Chapter 21
21. Chapter 22

1. Chapter 3
2. Chapter 4
3. Chapter 5
4. Chapter 6
5. Chapter 7
6. Chapter 8
7. Chapter 9
8. Chapter 10
9. Chapter 12
10. Chapter 13
11. Chapter 14
12. Chapter 15
13. Chapter 16
14. Chapter 17
15. Chapter 19
16. Chapter 20
17. Chapter 21
18. Chapter 22

Copyright Anthony Giddens and Philip W. Sutton 2021

The right of Anthony Giddens and Philip W. Sutton to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First edition published in 1989 by Polity Press
This ninth edition first published in 2021 by Polity Press

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ISBN-13: 978-1-5095-3923-9

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The publisher has used its best endeavours to ensure that the URLs for external websites referred to in this book are correct and active at the time of going to press. However, the publisher has no responsibility for the websites and can make no guarantee that a site will remain live or that the content is or will remain appropriate.

Every effort has been made to trace all copyright holders, but if any have been overlooked the publisher will be pleased to include any necessary credits in any subsequent reprint or edition.

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T his ninth edition of Sociology is unique the first to be finalized while the world is in the midst of a global health pandemic, as we write this Preface in late-November 2020. Many countries, including the UK, still have an unprecedented number of restrictions in place as governments try to control the spread of a novel coronavirus and the disease it causes, labelled as Covid-19. We hope that, at the time you read this, the worst of the pandemic has passed and something approaching normal life has returned. No doubt sociologists and many others will already be making their contribution to learning the lessons from this globally disruptive crisis.

The rapid spread of Covid-19 across the world is an illustration of the global interconnectedness of the human world. Before the pandemic there were, on average, 176,000 flights every day carrying more than 4 billion people per year to every continent on Earth, for business, work, migration, tourism and family visits. There is no global government, but todays world certainly feels smaller and more accessible, and it is increasingly experienced as one single human community. The optimistic advice to all new graduates, the worlds your oyster, becomes more accurate every year.

Yet such fabulous opportunities do not come risk-free. The aviation industry contributes to global warming and uses huge amounts of non-sustainable fossil fuels at a time when global warming is widely accepted as the most serious threat to the long-term future of human societies. How do we balance the opportunities and risks inherent in our love of and need for international travel? Aviation is just one example of the high-risk, high-opportunity world that human beings have created. Similarly, we are in the midst of an ongoing digital revolution that connects people together systematically and continuously, offering unprecedented opportunities for communication and networking. But, at the same time, the digital environment brings new possibilities for tracking, surveillance and data gathering that states and corporations use to delve ever deeper into the lives and lifestyles of individuals. Should we accept that forfeiting privacy is necessary in order to reap the benefits of the digital age? Sociological research and theorizing can help us all to think through these questions.

Sociology demands that we learn to set aside our personal beliefs and opinions during our work. In this way, learning how to think sociologically is a profound intellectual and emotional challenge that can be unsettling, though most students and professional sociologists say they have been changed, for the better, by the experience. The discipline also forces us to look beyond the immediate context of our individual lives to see our society in a new light, as we reach a deeper understanding of the causes and consequences of our own, and other peoples, actions. It also takes us into the ways of life in very different societies, broadening our understanding of the human experience around the world. We invite you to take the first steps on that journey.

R esearching, writing and producing this book involves a creative collective of people, not just two authors. The customary caveat applies, however: all errors remain the responsibility of the authors. First thanks must go to all of those who reviewed the twenty-two chapters. Yet again, their critical, constructive comments have been an invaluable source of expert knowledge which helps to keep the book at the forefront of contemporary research and theory. We also thank the many lecturers and student readers of the previous edition, people who actually use the book and tell us about their experience and suggest possible improvements. It often seems that the book mediates between cutting-edge research and the teaching and learning process, which is exactly how it should be.

As ever, the Polity staff made the production process relatively painless. Special mention must go to Neil de Cort, Sarah Dobson and Breffni OConnor, who took the book through production. We are very grateful for the painstaking work of Caroline Richmond, who never tires of pointing out our mistakes and inconsistencies, and always with good humour. As ever, our thanks to Jonathan Skerrett for his sound advice and good judgement on the big decisions. Finally, we thank Pat Sutton for more or less everything.