E.C. Cuff

From its first edition in 1979, Perspectives in Sociology has provided generations of undergraduates with a clear, reassuring introduction to the complications of sociological theory. This revised and updated edition features:a completely rewritten general introduction and conclusion;all-new introductions to each part, clarifying how each one builds on what came before;an updated set of formative questions at the end of each chapter;a comprehensive glossary of key terms.While retaining its emphasis and wealth of information on the founding figures of sociology, this sixth edition includes new tools that will allow students from related disciplines to access relevant sociological material quickly.

From its first edition in 1979, Perspectives in Sociology has provided generations of undergraduates with a clear, reassuring introduction to the complications of sociological theory. This revised and updated edition features:a completely rewritten general introduction and conclusion;all-new introductions to each part, clarifying how each one builds on what came before;an updated set of formative questions at the end of each chapter;a comprehensive glossary of key terms.While retaining its emphasis and wealth of information on the founding figures of sociology, this sixth edition includes new tools that will allow students from related disciplines to access relevant sociological material quickly.

This work offers a combination of theoretical critique and empirical study. It criticizes Alfred Schutz's discussion of multiple realities, Melvin Pollner's account of reality disjunctures, and Dorothy Smith's textual analysis of a story of a person becoming mentally ill. Cuff examines transcripts of persons talking about marital breakups and a radio program in which a family discusses a problem in the presence of a commentator and experts. The author stresses the temporal development of the presentation and resolution of conflicting versions of events as told by different persons. Contrasting versions are shown to not simply clash or contradict each other but to provide elaborations and alternative ways of describing events. Cuff shows that versions are not rigidly held, and that parties show an awareness of how their versions contribute to an intersubjective conversation. Co-published with the International Institute for Ethnomethodology and Conversation Analysis.