Routledge Pragmatic Humanism: On the Nature and Value of Sociological Knowledge (Routledge Advances in Sociology)

Product Description Is sociology best understood as simply chipping away at our ignorance about society, or does it have broader roles and responsibilities? If so, to what―or perhaps to whom―are these responsibilities? Installing humanity as its epistemological and normative start and endpoint, this book shows how humanism recasts sociology as an activity that does not merely do things, or effect things, but is also self-consciously for something. Rather than resurrecting problematic classical conceptions of humanism, the book instead constructs its arguments on pragmatic grounds, showing how a pragmatic humanism presents an improved picture of both the nature and value of the discipline. This picture is based less around the claim that sociology is capable of providing authoritative revelations about society, and more upon its capacity to offer representations of the social in epistemologically open, transformative, ethical, and hopeful ways. Ultimately, it argues that sociology’s real value can only be disclosed by replacing its image as a discipline aimed towards disinterested social enlightenment with one of itself as a practice both dependent upon, and at its best self-consciously aimed towards, human ends and imperatives. It will appeal to scholars and students across the social sciences, and to those working in social theory, sociology, and philosophy of the social sciences in particular. Review " This challenging book is long overdue and much needed. Marcus Morgan puts a humanist sociology fi rmly back on the agenda, clarifying humanism ' s pragmatic past, answering its many critics, and building a vital imagery of its rich potential for the future. A timely and important book. " Prof. Ken Plummer, Emeritus Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Essex. " Pragmatic Humanism  is a solid argument for transformative social sciences. Morgan should be read by anyone interested in the future of sociology and social science. " Prof. Bent Flyvbjerg, author of Making Social Science Matter, Professor and Chair at the University of Oxford. About the Author Marcus Morgan is a Fellow and College Lecturer at Murray Edwards College, Cambridge, and a Research Associate in the Sociology Department at the University of Cambridge.