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Sociology
This is quite simply the best intro sociology text ever. The author is a fabulous writer and is well versed in the discipline of sociology. He no longer writes textbooks, and no one since has come close to being this informative and illustrative. Unlike most academic works, this one is not a chore to read, but a pleasure.
- GenresSocial ScienceSociology
680 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1964
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 10, 2009
Most of my textbooks in high school and college weren't especially memorable or worthwhile as reading, though I suppose I learned things from all of them. A few, though, stayed in my memory because they really had interesting content (at the time) to me, and were intellectually stimulating. This is one from that select latter group. It introduced me to the idea that human society can be studied systematically, that even in the midst of human variety and diversity there are broad patterns; and it taught me pretty much the basic framework of what I know about sociological concepts and theory.
After introducing sociology as a science, Landis organizes the rest of his 34 chapters into very broad units. Among the topics covered are the role of heredity and environment; culture; the socialization process; social change and social control; the family; politics and economics; social problems; and the role of religion. Writing before the epochal convulsions of the late 60s, his descriptive treatment of then-current conditions, of course, is quite dated. Interestingly, he also doesn't deal with the role of gender in society, an omission that would have been corrected if the book had been published recently. (There is, in fact, a whole array of later editions, but I'm reviewing only the one I actually used and read, and have in hand.) On the plus side, however, it's also free from the heavy weight of ideological baggage that tended to dominate post-60s textbooks. The author's own perspective is probably that of what one of my college history teachers would have called the "bourgeoisie liberal," but he actually makes a clear (and largely successful) attempt to avoid bias and present a balanced treatment of the subject(s). For instance, the treatment of religion in general, and Christianity in particular, is not an invidious attack, and even includes positive comments.
With some supplementation to describe current conditions, many parts of this book would still be useful and relevant. A reader wanting to glean a basic view of sociology, or even home-schoolers looking for a textbook, might not find this a bad starting place, even in 2009.
After introducing sociology as a science, Landis organizes the rest of his 34 chapters into very broad units. Among the topics covered are the role of heredity and environment; culture; the socialization process; social change and social control; the family; politics and economics; social problems; and the role of religion. Writing before the epochal convulsions of the late 60s, his descriptive treatment of then-current conditions, of course, is quite dated. Interestingly, he also doesn't deal with the role of gender in society, an omission that would have been corrected if the book had been published recently. (There is, in fact, a whole array of later editions, but I'm reviewing only the one I actually used and read, and have in hand.) On the plus side, however, it's also free from the heavy weight of ideological baggage that tended to dominate post-60s textbooks. The author's own perspective is probably that of what one of my college history teachers would have called the "bourgeoisie liberal," but he actually makes a clear (and largely successful) attempt to avoid bias and present a balanced treatment of the subject(s). For instance, the treatment of religion in general, and Christianity in particular, is not an invidious attack, and even includes positive comments.
With some supplementation to describe current conditions, many parts of this book would still be useful and relevant. A reader wanting to glean a basic view of sociology, or even home-schoolers looking for a textbook, might not find this a bad starting place, even in 2009.
January 23, 2010
There might be some newer good/better ones, but this is the text I used and found it to be very good.
October 3, 2018
Saya suka dengan cara penulis menampilkan gagasannya dalam buku ini.
jadi pegangan saya mengajar sosiologi di kelas
jadi pegangan saya mengajar sosiologi di kelas
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews