The Third Revolution: Professional Elites in the Modern World

By Harold Perkin and Professor Harold Perkin

Book Overview

Perkin's ambitious new book examines the leading professional societies since World War II: those in the free market economies and also the collapsed command economies of Eastern Europe. He warns of the greed and corruption of their elites.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415143373
• ISBN13: 9780415143370
• Release Date: March 1996
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.21 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

A Key Tool to Studies on Contemporary Societies

After reading his "The Rise of the Professional Society", one cannot help but reading Harold Perkin's account on the main industrial societies as they have been shaped by their professional elites: USA, Japan, France, England, the former two Germanys, the former Soviet Union. This book differs from his previous in the rather sociological character of his analysis, since it is both more contemporary and comprehensive. Historians might complain, but what lies behind is an unavoidable description of his theory on the professional society applied to different contexts. His warning on the dangers of the abuse of the elites is also renewed. A highlight is his statements about the probable decay of the anglosaxon world, cornered by the too ambitious private sector professionals, and the more advanced nature of the social system in France, Germany and Japan, in comparison. This book has contributed to change my personal image of the state of the world.