From the publisher - Three leading thinkers analyze the erosion of democracy’s social foundations and call for a movement to reduce inequality, strengthen inclusive solidarity, empower citizens, and reclaim pursuit of the public good. Democracy is in trouble. Populism is a common scapegoat but not the root cause. More basic are social and economic transformations eroding the foundations of democracy, ruling elites trying to lock in their own privilege, and cultural perversions like making individualistic freedom the enemy of democracy’s other crucial ideals of equality and solidarity. In Degenerations of Democracy three of our most prominent intellectuals investigate democracy gone awry, locate our points of fracture, and suggest paths to democratic renewal.

In Does Capitalism Have a Future?, a global quintet of distinguished scholars cut their way through to the question of whether our capitalist system can survive in the medium run. Despite the current gloom, conventional wisdom still assumes that there is no real alternative to capitalism. The authors argue that this generalization is a mistaken outgrowth of the optimistic nineteenth-century claim that human history ascends through stages to an enlightened equilibrium of liberal capitalism.

“This collection of Craig Calhoun's essays brings us back to essentials: what do we mean by the terms “class” and “radicalism,” and how do these concepts help us to understand the social movements and conflicts of early industrial society? … Among his other accomplishments, Calhoun illustrates how difficult it is to draw a line between the “traditional” protests of the early nineteenth century and the “modern” class protests envisioned by most social historians.” — James R. Barrett, American Historical Review.

From the publisher — Craig Calhoun, one of the most respected social scientists in the world, re-examines nationalism in light of post-1989 enthusiasm for globalization and the new anxieties of the twenty-first century. Nations Matter argues that pursuing a purely postnational politics is premature at best and possibly dangerous. Calhoun argues that, rather than wishing nationalism away, it is important to transform it. One key is to distinguish the ideology of nationalism as fixed and inherited identity from the development of public projects that continually remake the terms of national integration. Standard concepts like "civic" vs. "ethnic" nationalism can get in the way unless they are critically re-examined — as an important chapter in this book does.

From the publisher: Nationalism is one of the most pressing of global problems, exacerbating ethnic conflicts and increasing the likelihood of war. It is also basic to defining the rights of democratic citizenship, and can be a source of inspiration and social solidarity. In this fascinating overview, Craig Calhoun considers nationalism's diverse manifestations, its history, and its relationship to imperialism and colonialism

From the publisher: In this outstanding reinterpretation — and extension — of the Critical Theory tradition, Craig Calhoun surveys the origins, fortunes and prospects of this most influential of theoretical approaches. Moving with ease from the early Frankfurt School to Habermas, to contemporary debates over postmodernism, feminism and nationalism, Calhoun breathes new life into Critical Social Theory, showing how it can learn from the past and contribute to the future.

From the publisher: "We want neither gods nor emperors", went the words from the Chinese version of The Internationale. Students sang the old socialist song as they gathered in Beijing's Tiananmen Square in the Spring of 1989. Craig Calhoun, a sociologist who witnessed the monumental event, offers a vivid, carefully crafted analysis of the student movement, its complex leadership, its eventual suppression, and its continuing legacy.

The seventh edition of this research-based survey presents sociological principles using five key concepts: function, structure, action, culture, and power. These concepts allow the text to provide a more comprehensive coverage of structural sociology and culture than any other book. The balanced presentation is combined with student-oriented examples that bring the content to life.

Craig Calhoun's The Question of Class Struggle attempts to find reasons and remedies for the failure to formulate an adequate theory of "populist" movements. In a novel analysis of late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century England, Calhoun argues that popular protest was mounted by reactionary radicals whose ideology was largely a defense of the traditional values of culture and community against an emerging industrial order. He also offers through reconsiderations of several histories of class struggle, including E. P. Thompson's influential masterpiece, The making of the English Working Class. Calhoun focuses on the social foundations for collective action. In his view, English radicalism during the 1810s and early 1820s was based in local and craft communities. Rather than include this English populism within the Marxist notion of class struggle, Calhoun shows that it was rooted in the particular situation of English workers in social and economic transition. As he reassesses these populist movements, he broadens our understanding of community, class, tradition, and collective action.