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Charles Lemert, Editor Social Theory: The Multicultural and Classic Readings. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview, 2010. 691 pp. $52.00. ISBN 0-813343-925.
Reviewing a new edition of a social theory reader presents a peculiar challenge. At once, one must consider the quality of the readings that are chosen, the organizational logic of the book, and the unique features of the updated edition. In the case of Charles Lemert' s Social Theory: The Multicultural and Classic Readings, now in its fourth edition, I suspect that many instructors of undergraduate sociological theory courses will be familiar with the first two dimensions as they apply to this popular reader. The volume is commendable for its unmatched breadth of coverage and its accessibility to a wide range of readers. However, of primary interest to most will likely be the degree to which the fourth edition differs from the third. At the outset, let me say that those satisfied with earlier editions of this reader will probably remain satisfied with the new edition. Unfortunately, those unsatisfied with previous editions, for whatever reason, will not find much in the fourth edition to change their minds.
The reader is aptly titled Social Theory, as it covers material that extends far beyond what is typically considered the canon of sociological theory. One hundred six different authors are represented in 134 readings, and they range from the usual (worthy) suspects (i.e., Marx, Weber, Durkheim, Parsons, Goffman, and Wallerstein) to theorists who typically receive less attention in readers of this type (i.e., DuBois, Mannheim, Lyotard, and Haraway). In addition, Lemert has given ample space to those who are at the margins of or fall completely outside of what most consider sociological theory. Social reformers and activists (Jane Addams, Martin Luther King Jr., Students for a Democratic Society), economists (Amartya Sen, John Maynard Keynes, John Kenneth GaIbraith), and...