The Active Society RevisitedThe Active Society, published in 1968, is the most ambitious book in Amitai Etzioni's remarkable career. It is sociology in the grand tradition, with at least one foot outside its own time. In it, Etzioni confronts the great modern irony- that setting out to become the masters of nature, humans become mastered by their own instruments- championing the sense of agency and aiming to demonstrate that humanity can direct its own creations, or at least, that societies can aspire to a greater measure of authentic self-government. In this new collection of essays, Wilson Carey McWilliams brings together scholars in a range of disciplines to analyze the significance and shortcomings of this important work. They comment on the importance of Etzioni's contributions, the magnitude of his achievement, and the extent to which The Active Society speaks to contemporary social and political life. |
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Contents
Introduction | 1 |
Macroscopic Action On Amitai Etzionis Contribution to Social Theory | 13 |
The Cultural Dimensions of The Active Society | 23 |
The Cybernetic Institutionalist | 53 |
The Constitution of ActivityEtzionis Foundation of Social Theory in Collective Action and Collective Actors | 71 |
The Actively Drifting Society | 89 |
Communitarianism The Highest State of Progressivism The Active Society Revisited | 117 |
The Teamwork of Sisyphus PostFordist Capitalism Corporate Culture and Etzionis Active Society | 137 |
The Eagle and the Worm The Active Society from a Community Organizers Perspective | 209 |
Searching for Active Citizenship | 223 |
Courting Megalogues Judicial Power in the Active Society | 247 |
Community Formation Gender Issues and the Evolution of International Law A Perspective on Amitai Etzionis The Active Society | 261 |
Lighting Damp Logs Social Movements Liberal Democracy and the Politics of Transformation | 285 |
From the Active Society to the Good Society The Second Sailing of Amitai Etzioni | 311 |
The Active Society Revisited A Response | 333 |
Contributors | 349 |
Membership and Belonging Etzionis Authenticity and the Existential Challenges of Liberalism | 167 |
Swing Low Sweet Chariot Transformation and Religious Tradition | 193 |
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Common terms and phrases
able action Active Society actors agency alienation American Amitai analysis appear argues argument associations authentic basic become building bundles called Chapter citizens civil collective collective actors commitment complex concept concerns consensus Constitution corporate Court create critical culture decisions democracy democratic direction discussion effective efforts elites empirical equality especially Etzioni example fact forces forms goals greater groups human idea important increase individual institutions interests issues kind knowledge least Left less liberal means mobilization moral movement needs normative notes observes organizational organizations participation particular political possible potential practices Press problem produce provides question rape relations requires responsive Review role rules sense social Sociology structures success suffrage suggests symbolic theory tion transformation understanding United University values violence women York
Bibliographic information
| Title | The Active Society Revisited G - Reference,Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series The Active Society Revisited, Wilson C. McWilliams |
| Editor | Wilson C. McWilliams |
| Edition | illustrated |
| Publisher | Rowman & Littlefield, 2006 |
| ISBN | 0742549151, 9780742549159 |
| Length | 352 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |