Introduction : continuity and change in the preoccupations of key sociological thinkers

In the main part of this introduction to the second edition of Key Sociological Thin"ers, I want to provide a frame within which to situate the chapters that follow. I will do this by highlighting some of the key continuities and changes in the themes that have preoccupied sociological thought in the past 150 years or so. Among other things, I hope to show the importance of understanding the past preoccupations of sociological theory for grasping sociology's relationship to the present. I will focus upon a limited number of salient themes: modernity; consciousness and identity; values and value relevant critique; and political commitments and their philosophical justification. I will follow this with discussions of: the necessity of combining different themes when addressing particular problems; sociology's civic mission; and the role of sociological thought in the formulation of political strategy. In the final part of the chapter, I will outline the structure of the book, what it hopes to achieve, and the changes that have been made since the first edition.