The Problem of Order – What Unites & Divides Society - Softcover

Wrong, Dennis H

Softcover

ISBN 10: 067470777X ISBN 13: 9780674707771

Publisher: Harvard University Press, 1995

Synopsis

At the end of the 20th century, many fear that the bonds holding civil society together have come undone. Yet, as Dennis Wrong shows us, our generation is not alone in fearing a breakdown of social ties and a descent into violent conflict. Modern masters such as Hobbes, Rousseau, Freud, Mead, Parsons, Marx, Durkheim and Weber tried to understand what in human nature provokes social co-operation and solidarity and what arouses conflict and chaos. To minimize discord and promote civility, society must grasp the psychological and sociological elements of human nature involved in attaining that end. The author affords a perspective on our own efforts to create a well-functioning system that allows for productive and meaningful lives and remains open to change and growth. This book reveals the individual and social processes that offer potential for reconciliation in the present and the future.

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Review

Masterly work...Can we develop forms of social cohesion which both renew social solidarities yet preserve a cosmopolitan acceptance of cultural difference? The issue is a serious one for us all and we can only be grateful to Dennis Wrong for clearing so much ground for us. -- Anthony Giddens "New Statesman"

Edition details

• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 067470777X
• ISBN 13: 9780674707771
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 364