Sociology—Essays on Approach & Method

These essays reflect Andre Beteille’s central concerns as a teacher and scholar of sociology. They examine the nature and scope of the discipline including its distinctive conception as an intellectual pursuit and its relation to associated fields of anthropology, economics and political science. The substantially revised second edition re-emphasizes the author’s standpoint that sociology as an intellectual discipline should be concerned more directly with the present than the past. In addition to his central concern of comparing societies and the social significance of tradition, Beteille engages with the ideas of sociologists like Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, N.K. Bose and M.N. Srinivas. Lucidly written, the book enhances our understanding of the social framework in which we live. Essential reading for students and researchers of sociology, anthropology, history and political science, this volume will also interest the non-specialist reader.