Book Review Assignment

From the list below (all of which are in the Kennedy Library), select a book by one of the theorists and write a book review. Your review should include a summary of the main points of the book, a discussion of the organization and presentation of the material, a brief biography of the author and why he/she wrote the book, strengths and weakness of the book from your point of view and include a summary of any professional reviews of the book that you were able to find. Your paper should have the correct bibliographic citation format as the title. It should include: Author, Year, Title, Place of publiction, Publisher.  Reviews of the book you have found should be listed at the end in the same format. Your paper should be typed, single-spaced, 3-5 pages.  (10 points)  Due: May 24, 2006.

Auguste Comte: The Foundation of Sociology,
 Cours de philosophie positive.
(English. Selections)


Spencer, Herbert: The data of ethics.
 Education: intellectual, moral, and physical,
 Essays on education and kindred subjects/ Facts and comments.

Durkheim, Emile: The division of labor in society
    Incest; the nature and origin of the taboo
    The rules of sociological method  
    Sociology and philosophy
    Suicide, a study in sociology


Karl Marx:  Early writings
    The German ideology
    Capital
    The poverty of philosophy
    Revolution and counter-revolution
Max Weber: The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism,
    The city
    Essays in economic sociology
    General economic history
    Max Weber on the methodology of the social sciences
    Max Weber on universities : the power of the state and the dignity of the academic callin in Imperial Germany
    The religion of China : Confucianism and Taoism
    The sociology of religion



Harriet Martineau: Harriet Martineau on women
    The martyr age of the United States
    Society in America
Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Women and Economics
Herland
The home; its work and influence.
The man-made world (Our androcentric culture)
The Yellow Wallpaper


Georg Simmel: Conflict
    Georg Simmel on women, sexuality, and love
    On individuality and social forms
    The philosophy of money
Talcott Parsons: Action and the Human Condition
    Essays in sociological theory
    The evolution of societies
    Family, socialization and interaction process
    Politics and social structure.
    Social structure and personality.
    The social system.
    Social systems and the evolution of action theory
    The evolution of societies
    Sociological theory and modern society.
    Stability and social change
    The system of modern societies.
    Structure and process in modern societies.


W.E.B. DuBois:  Against racism
    The autobiography of W.E.B. DuBois
    Black folk: then and now; an essay in the history and sociology of the Negro race.
    The Black North in 1901; a social study.
    Black reconstruction
    Color and democracy : colonies and peace
    Darkwater : voices from within the veil
    Souls of black folk

Thorstein Veblen: The engineers and the price system
    The higher learning in America; a memorandum on the conduct of universities by business men
    An inquiry into the nature of peace and the terms of its perpetuation.
    The theory of business enterprise.
    The theory of the leisure class


George Herbert Mead: Mind, Self and Society
    Essays on social psychology
    The philosophy of the act
    The philosophy of the present
Erving Goffman: Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity
    Asylums: essays on the social situation of mental patients and other inmates.
    Behavior in public places
    Encounters; two studies in the sociology of interaction.
    Forms of talk
    Frame analysis : an essay on the organization of experience
    The presentation of self in everyday life


Assignment is due: May 24, 2006

Go to Discussion assignment.


return to schedule  or homepage