Peter Preston

This book argues that although relations between China and Europe are strained in many areas, including trade, human rights and views about political systems, nevertheless established linkages, especially when considered in the context of long-term historical linkages, development trajectories and intellectual cultures, offer good prospects for future progressive collaborative exchanges. Approaching the subject in a balanced way, giving equal weight to the perspectives of both sides, the book examines China and Europe’s shared experiences of age-old civilizations, of the disorienting effects of the economic, social and political upheavals triggered by the late eighteenth century creation of the modern world, and of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries era of European empires, warfare and the Cold War. It contends that although China and Europe appear superficially to have followed different paths, with many problems in their relationship resulting, they in fact have a very great deal in common concerning how they have coped with the long shift from ancient civilizations to the modern world of natural-science-based industrial capitalism.

This book argues that although relations between China and Europe are strained in many areas, including trade, human rights and views about political systems, nevertheless established linkages, especially when considered in the context of long-term historical linkages, development trajectories and intellectual cultures, offer good prospects for future progressive collaborative exchanges. Approaching the subject in a balanced way, giving equal weight to the perspectives of both sides, the book examines China and Europe’s shared experiences of age-old civilizations, of the disorienting effects of the economic, social and political upheavals triggered by the late eighteenth century creation of the modern world, and of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries era of European empires, warfare and the Cold War. It contends that although China and Europe appear superficially to have followed different paths, with many problems in their relationship resulting, they in fact have a very great deal in common concerning how they have coped with the long shift from ancient civilizations to the modern world of natural-science-based industrial capitalism.

A diverse range of stories in this collection, tales of small decisions with momentous consequences, chance meetings and humour, with a little science fiction and magic woven in for good measure. Stories whose action is set as far apart as Lancashire and Arizona. Tales of ordinary folk, and those not so ordinary. A trainspotter, a furniture maker, a clockmaker... Does the Earl of Wigan exist? Is it possible to write a story without the letter "e"? And what happens when all the clocks in the world stop? There is a spy story, a children's story, a sprinkling of romance, and stories which will surprise, delight and entertain. Whether you can spend a lazy evening within these pages, or just snatch a few moments of quiet in a busy commute, this book has something for you. After all, it's just A Matter Of Time.

"Vertical Line" is both a book-length prose poem and a modern novel. It also represents a cosmology. At its heart, where life might begin are giant and fearful forms: rock lords and a suffering figure - and light which spreads outwards, touching inner surfaces ...

'Hor' is both a novel and a book-length prose-poem. Based on the most sacred of ancient Egyptian texts, it tells the story of the journey of the sun-god, Re, through the Underworld towards the dawn. Woven into this central theme are the mysteries of the ancient mythology as recorded in such texts as the Book of the Dead and the Book of Caverns from the tomb of the pharaoh, Rameses VI.

Set in the medieval city of Durham in the north-east of England, 'Corridor Dance' describes a single day in the life of Simon Bader, a student who, following the death of a friend in the river, confronts his own inner demons and is both torn apart by them and caused to rise above them at the same time.

`The expression of human experience it embodies ... includes all personal history'. Saul Bellow's view of the city is far from that of classic geographical descriptions which look at growth or decline, demographic patterns, traffic flows and economic potential: these empirically conceived models of urban geography fail to accommodate the crucial human aspect of city life. Located at the interface of geography and literature, Writing the City visualizes the city through the hopes, aspirations, disappointments and pains of international novelists and creative writers. From Manchester, Montreal and Sydney to Osaka, Varanasi amd Odessa, cities become more than their built environment, more than a set of class or economic relationships: they are also an experience to be lived, suffered and undergone. Thus cities are seen in terms of the innocence of an Eden now lost, a threat of sinful Babylon and the promise of a New Jerusalem.

Dr Preston’s book, first published in 1982, presents a critical history of development studies since the Second World War, linking the recent, neo-Marxist, debate with the whole tradition in the field, going back to the work of economists like Arthur Lewis.He identifies a series of ‘schools’ and evaluates their contribution, supplying in each case a careful analysis, informed by the sociology of knowledge, of the work of its leading theorists. His final assessment draws on the critical theory of Habermas, arguing that social theorising is essentially practical; a matter of the construction, criticism and comparative ranking of ideologies, and that theorists should therefore consider what it makes sense for them to do or say, given their circumstances and the problems they address.

The theme of this work, first published in 1985, is the exchange between issues of development and problems of social theory. They provide preliminary analysis of the multiplicity of social-theoretic arguments in development theory and their implications for social theory in general. The book will be of interest to all those interested in the contemporary ‘restructuring’ of social theory and to theorists of development who are rethinking their concerns in a period of pessimism and doubt.

First published in 1987, this volume stresses the importance of development studies for sociology, as P. W. Preston argues that this field of study is emerging from the technical social scientific ghetto back into the mainstream of the ‘classical tradition’ of social theorizing, represented by Marx, Weber and Durkheim.Preston discusses the position of development studies in relation to the wider group of the social sciences in general and to sociology in particular. Using examples mainly from the study of Southeast Asia, he looks at the diversity of available ‘modes of social theoretic engagement’ and considers the work of the colonial administrator scholar, the humanist academic scholar, and the scholar who theorises on behalf of the planners, discusses the mode of political writing, and Marxian analyses of development; and considers the particular problems surrounding the elites of post-colonial ‘nation states’.

This book tracks the phases of Singapore’s economic and political development, arguing that its success was always dependent upon the territories links with the surrounding region and the wider global system, and suggests that managing these links today will be the key to the country’s future. Singapore has followed a distinctive historical development trajectory. It was one of a number of cities which provided bases for the expansion of the British empire in the East. But the Pacific War provided local elites with their chance to secure independence. In Singapore the elite disciplined and mobilized their population and built successfully on their colonial inheritance. Today, the city-state prospers in the context of its regional and global networks, and sustaining and nurturing these are the keys to its future. But there are clouds on the elite’s horizons; domestically, the population is restive with inequality, migration and surplus-repression causing concern; and internationally, the strategy of constructing a business-hub economy is being widely copied and both Hong Kong and Shanghai are significant competitors. This book discusses these issues and argues that although success is likely to characterize Singapore’s future, the elite will have to address these significant domestic and international problems.

The theme of this work, first published in 1985, is the exchange between issues of development and problems of social theory. They provide preliminary analysis of the multiplicity of social-theoretic arguments in development theory and their implications for social theory in general. The book will be of interest to all those interested in the contemporary ‘restructuring’ of social theory and to theorists of development who are rethinking their concerns in a period of pessimism and doubt.

First published in 1987, this volume stresses the importance of development studies for sociology, as P. W. Preston argues that this field of study is emerging from the technical social scientific ghetto back into the mainstream of the ‘classical tradition’ of social theorizing, represented by Marx, Weber and Durkheim.Preston discusses the position of development studies in relation to the wider group of the social sciences in general and to sociology in particular. Using examples mainly from the study of Southeast Asia, he looks at the diversity of available ‘modes of social theoretic engagement’ and considers the work of the colonial administrator scholar, the humanist academic scholar, and the scholar who theorises on behalf of the planners, discusses the mode of political writing, and Marxian analyses of development; and considers the particular problems surrounding the elites of post-colonial ‘nation states’.

Dr Preston’s book, first published in 1982, presents a critical history of development studies since the Second World War, linking the recent, neo-Marxist, debate with the whole tradition in the field, going back to the work of economists like Arthur Lewis.He identifies a series of ‘schools’ and evaluates their contribution, supplying in each case a careful analysis, informed by the sociology of knowledge, of the work of its leading theorists. His final assessment draws on the critical theory of Habermas, arguing that social theorising is essentially practical; a matter of the construction, criticism and comparative ranking of ideologies, and that theorists should therefore consider what it makes sense for them to do or say, given their circumstances and the problems they address.

This book tracks the phases of Singapore’s economic and political development, arguing that its success was always dependent upon the territories links with the surrounding region and the wider global system, and suggests that managing these links today will be the key to the country’s future. Singapore has followed a distinctive historical development trajectory. It was one of a number of cities which provided bases for the expansion of the British empire in the East. But the Pacific War provided local elites with their chance to secure independence. In Singapore the elite disciplined and mobilized their population and built successfully on their colonial inheritance. Today, the city-state prospers in the context of its regional and global networks, and sustaining and nurturing these are the keys to its future. But there are clouds on the elite’s horizons; domestically, the population is restive with inequality, migration and surplus-repression causing concern; and internationally, the strategy of constructing a business-hub economy is being widely copied and both Hong Kong and Shanghai are significant competitors. This book discusses these issues and argues that although success is likely to characterize Singapore’s future, the elite will have to address these significant domestic and international problems.

This introduction will serve as a 'first stop' for those interested in Japan, its role in the Pacific Asian region and, in turn, that region's role in the evolving global system. In this volume, P. W. Preston critically analyses the political economy, social institutions and culture of Pacific Asia. The analysis focuses on Japan , it's relations with the inner periphery of Southeast Asia, and its developing linkages with the reforming socialist countries of China and Indo-China The critical perspective, awareness of cultural and ethnic trends and a sophisticated grasp of social patterns makes this volume an essential introduction to the region.

This introduction will serve as a 'first stop' for those interested in Japan, its role in the Pacific Asian region and, in turn, that region's role in the evolving global system. In this volume, P. W. Preston critically analyses the political economy, social institutions and culture of Pacific Asia. The analysis focuses on Japan , it's relations with the inner periphery of Southeast Asia, and its developing linkages with the reforming socialist countries of China and Indo-China The critical perspective, awareness of cultural and ethnic trends and a sophisticated grasp of social patterns makes this volume an essential introduction to the region.

In this invaluable introduction to the major post-Second World War theories of Third World development, Peter Preston takes as his focus the strategies used to analyze change in the Third World and examines the ways in which different conceptions of the nature of change have led to different lines of policy advice. In doing so, the author demonstrates how the various contemporary approaches to development draw upon strategies of enquiry which are lodged deep within the intellectual traditions of the modern world. The author's approach is based on the premise that the reader can only fully grasp the live issues and debates surrounding development through an understanding of the linkages with the broader frameworks of social theory. The volume is organized into four major sections: An introduction to the nature of social scientific analysis; A review of the work of the major social scientific figures of the nineteenth century and their impacts in the twentieth; A comprehensive discussion of the post-Second World War theories of Third World development; A prospective study of the current debates within the field of development theory about global structures and agent responses. Development Theory is designed to appeal to students across a wide range of disciplines, who are taking courses dealing with aspects of development.

In this invaluable introduction to the major post-Second World War theories of Third World development, Peter Preston takes as his focus the strategies used to analyze change in the Third World and examines the ways in which different conceptions of the nature of change have led to different lines of policy advice. In doing so, the author demonstrates how the various contemporary approaches to development draw upon strategies of enquiry which are lodged deep within the intellectual traditions of the modern world. The author's approach is based on the premise that the reader can only fully grasp the live issues and debates surrounding development through an understanding of the linkages with the broader frameworks of social theory. The volume is organized into four major sections: An introduction to the nature of social scientific analysis; A review of the work of the major social scientific figures of the nineteenth century and their impacts in the twentieth; A comprehensive discussion of the post-Second World War theories of Third World development; A prospective study of the current debates within the field of development theory about global structures and agent responses. Development Theory is designed to appeal to students across a wide range of disciplines, who are taking courses dealing with aspects of development.