Download or read book The Cambridge Handbook of Social Theory: Volume 2, Contemporary Theories and Issues written by Peter Kivisto and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-12-17 with total page 1092 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This ambitious two-volume handbook of social theory consists of forty original contributions. The researchers take stock of the state of social theory and its relationship to the canon, exploring such topics as the nature, purpose, and meaning of social theory; the significance of the classics; the impact of specific individual and theory schools; and more. Both volumes reflect a mixture of what intellectual historian Morton White distinguished as the 'annalist of ideas' and the 'analyst of ideas,' locating theoretical thought within the larger socio-historical context that shaped it - within the terrain of the sociology of knowledge. Exploring the contemporary relevance of theories in a manner that is historically situated and sensitive, this impressive and comprehensive set will likely stand the test of time.