Crisis and Change Today: Basic Questions of Marxist Sociology

By Peter Knapp and Alan Spector

Crisis and Change Today provides a solid introduction to Marxist social theory. The work's unique voice is expressed in its Socratic-dialogic approach, structured around forty questions that students have about society and social change. Topics range from theories of history, economics, unemployment, racial oppression, the state, fascism, the collapse of the Soviet bloc, and points of convergence and difference between the dialectical approach and other approaches to social science. The content and tone of the work invites students to evaluate various traditional and current explanations of social institutions and social processes and encourages them to weigh the debates and investigate further.

The first edition was very well received (Distinguished Scholarship Award of the Section on Marxist Sociology of the ASA), and the second edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to be relevant for students today. Though the first edition was written during the wake of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the growing gap between the rich and the poor and the economic crisis have generated more interest in using Marxist analysis both as a tool to analyze and understand capitalism and the weaknesses of past Marxist praxis.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0742520447
• ISBN13: 9780742520448
• Release Date: January 2011
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
• Length: 387 Pages
• Weight: 1.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 8.9"
• Age Range: 18 to 22 years
• Grade Range: Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

A great introduction to Marxian ideas for contemporary times

This book is a must for those interested in Marxian sociology but are unfamilar with the difficult concepts in Marxism. It provides information in a very readable fashion for students, workers, or any one else. Also, the ideas that are presented remain comtemporary to our times with questions on the fall of the USSR and other ex-"Communist" nations. Marxism is a real system, with a philosophy and worldview that must be understood before one can make that leap to Marxism.