Most texts on classical social theory offer exhaustive coverage of every possible theorist, making it difficult to use the book in one semester. Capitalism and Classical Social Theory, Second Edition represents a departure from this approach by offering solid coverage of the classical triumvirate (Marx, Durkheim, and Weber), but also extending the canon strategically to include Simmel, four early female theorists, and the writings of Du Bois. The result is a manageable, but thorough, examination of the key classical theorists.

The second edition has been updated throughout and includes two new chapters: one on Weber and rationalization, and one on Du Bois and his writings on race. A new concluding chapter links classical theory to current developments in capitalism during an age of austerity.

John Bratton is Adjunct Professor in the Centre for Work and Community Studies at Athabasca University, Canada, and a Visiting Professor at Edinburgh Napier University, Edinburgh, Scotland. He has taught a variety of sociology courses, including classical social theory, over a career of 30 years. He is the author of Japanization at Work and co-author of Workplace Learning: A Critical Introduction with Jean C. Helms Mills, Timothy Pyrch, and Peter Sawchuk; Work and Organizational Behaviour with Militza Callinan, Martin Corbett, Carolyn Forshaw, and Peter Sawchuk; and Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice, now in its fifth edition, with Jeff Gold.

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David Denham is an Honourary Research Fellow at Wolverhampton University, England, where he taught a wide variety of sociology courses, including classical social theory, over a career of 35 years. He has published articles on the sociology of law, criminology, and the sociology of sport and is co-author with Lorraine Wolhuter and Neil Olley of Victimology: Victimization and Victims’ Rights.

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This book offers an interesting discussion of the development of sociological theory, with a specific emphasis on the ways that capitalism shaped the field of sociology during its early years...Its presentation of the social, historical, and economic context from which early sociological theory emerged is exemplary: detailed, thorough, and compelling.

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