A Handful of Thistles: Collected Papers in Moral Conviction

This selection of essays by one of the most eminent sociologists of our time represents a selection of his analytical and moral or political writing over a lifetime of work. The book is organized thematically rather than chronologiè ally, and is divided into four parts: paè¨ ers on the uses of sociology, on ideas and ideologies, on sociological analysis, and a final section entitled professing sociology. While the collection demonè² trates maturation, the author's central preoccupations have remained constant over the years. A reflective autoè iographical introduction places the auè² hors choice of problems and the development of his ideas in the social and cultural context of his life and his work. He confesses to .having experiè nced, in his life and his work, being a "stranger within the gate," and believes that this sense of marginality has both informed and influenced his thinking. And he sees the social conflicts that shook the world during his young adulthood as having creative as well as destructive consequences.