Sociology Beyond Societies: Mobilities for the Twenty-First Century

by John Urry

In this ground-breaking contribution to social theory, John Urry argues that the traditional basis of sociology - the study of society - is outmoded in an increasingly borderless world. If sociology is to make a pertinent contribution to the post societal era it must forget the social rigidities of the pre-global order and, instead, switch its focus to the study of both physical and virtual movement. In considering this sociology of mobilities, the book concerns itself with the travels of people, ideas, images, messages, waste products and money across international borders, and the implications these mobilities have to our experiences of time, space, dwelling and citizenship.

Sociology Beyond Society extends recent debate about globalisation both by providing an analysis of how mobilities reconstitute social life in uneven and complex ways, and by arguing for the significance of objects, senses, and time and space in the theorising of contemporary life.

This book will be essential reading for undergraduates and graduates studying sociology and cultural geography.

Genres: Sociology

268 pages, Hardcover

First published November 25, 1999

Reviews

[Waris Ahmad Faizi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Innovative!

This book by John Urry challenges traditional sociology’s focus on stable, bounded societies by emphasizing the importance of flows, networks, and mobility in the contemporary world. John Urry argues that modern social life is increasingly shaped by the movement of people, goods, information, images, and capital across borders, making nation-centered models of society inadequate. By introducing the “mobilities paradigm,” the book encourages sociologists to analyze globalization, technology, and social relations through patterns of circulation and connectivity rather than fixed structures.

Urry also highlights how mobility transforms our experience of time. In a world of rapid transportation, digital communication, and global networks, social life becomes increasingly organized around acceleration, simultaneity, and real-time coordination. Time is no longer simply sequential or locally structured; instead, it is compressed and synchronized across distant places. This shift reshapes everyday routines, work rhythms, and social expectations, making temporal flexibility and speed central features of contemporary life.