Contested Knowledge: Social Theory Today

In the fifth edition Contested Knowledge, social theorist Steven Seidman presents the latest topics in social theory and addresses the current shift of 'universalist theorists' to networks of clustered debates.

• Responds to current issues, debates, and new social movements
• Reviews sociological theory from a contemporary perspective
• Reveals how the universal theorist and the era of rival schools has been replaced by networks of clustered debates that are relatively 'autonomous' and interdisciplinary
• Features updates and in-depth discussions of the newest clustered debates in social theory—intimacy, postcolonial nationalism, and the concept of 'the other'
• Challenges social scientists to renew their commitment to the important moral and political role social knowledge plays in public life
• Accompanied by a companion website for students at www.wiley.com/go/seidman featuring chapter outlines and useful web links; an instructor site can also be accessed which features password-protected PowerPoint teaching slides

Steven Seidman is Professor of Sociology at State University of New York at Albany. He is a world-renowned social theorist working in the areas of social theory, culture, sexuality, comparative sociology, theory of democracy, nationalism, and globalization. He is the author and editor of several books, including Embattled Eros: Sexual Politics and Ethics in Contemporary America (1992), The Postmodern Turn: New Perspectives on Social Theory (editor, 1995), Queer Theory/Sociology (Blackwell, 1996), The New Social Theory Reader: Contemporary Debates (edited with Jeffrey C. Alexander, 2001), and Beyond the Closet: The Transformation of Gay and Lesbian Life (2002).