In this video, Dalton Conley discusses the C.W.Mills’ idea that a successful sociologist makes the familiar strange.
Tag Archive for ‘sociological imagination’
An early review of the Sociological Imagination
“Imagine a burly cowpuncher on the long, slow ride from the Panhandle of Texas to Columbia University, carrying in his saddle-bag some books which he reads with absorption while his horse trots along. Imagine that among the books are some… Read More ›
The best of @ProfSteveFuller on Sociological Imagination
“The best of @ProfSteveFuller on Sociological Imagination” on Bundlr
Sociological Imagination and #UKRiots
“Sociological Imagination and UK Riots” on Bundlr
The Future of Sociology
“Sociology is a discipline that has to be ‘achieved’, or continually re-invented, in new circumstances.” – John Holmwood
Experiencing sociology’s midlife crisis?
Is it possible for an academic discipline to experience a midlife crisis? The recent exchange in the British Journal of Sociology on ‘sociology’s misfortune’ (Holmwood, 2010; Savage, 2010a; Rosenfeld, 2010) was just the most recent of a raft of work… Read More ›
No nation now, but the imagination
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of C. Wright Mills’ death, Sociological Imagination pays a respectful and moving tribute to the man who gave this forum its name through the legacy of his classic 1959 book, The Sociological Imagination, a veritable manifesto for… Read More ›
Call for Contributions: what does the Sociological Imagination mean today?
It has been over 50 years since C. Wright Mills wrote the Sociological Imagination. In that time the world has changed beyond recognition: the Cold War ended, the Keynesian consensus broke down, a globalizing neoliberalism rose to the ascendancy and… Read More ›
Would C Wright Mills have kept a blog?
After a particularly inspiring session at the BSA Conference this year to celebrate the 50th anniversary of C. Wright Mills’ death, I have started to read The Sociological Imagination again. It was a standard introductory book for sociology students and… Read More ›
Imaginative sociology and talking things
How far does your (sociological) imagination stretch? Let’s find out by considering the following question: Imagine that things could speak – what would they say? This question was put to 42 persons between the ages of 18-50 years old in… Read More ›
Our 10 most popular posts in November
Charles Wright Mills’ Sociological Imagination and why we fail to match it today Perhaps the most demotivating image EVER (speaking as a website edited by two near-to-completion PhD students) The University Project Privilege & Oppression, Conflict & Compassion Review of… Read More ›
Popular culture and the unconstrained sociological imagination
Over the last few years there has been one passage of academic social science text that has stayed with me more than any other. The issue it raises concers the way in which the sociological imagination is located and deployed… Read More ›
The Sociological Imagination
The name Mills gave to this promise was the sociological imagination, defined as that “quality of mind essential to comprehend the interplay of man and society, of biography and history, of self and the world”. The sociological imagination offered the… Read More ›
Are you writing the ‘I’ into your research?
It was a surprise and somehow a welcome relief when my supervisor at the University of Nottingham, Prof Carol Hall, encouraged me to ‘write the I’ into my MA dissertation about emotional intelligence in teaching and learning. The six (long,… Read More ›
New column! “Visual Sociology” call for reader submissions
For all professional and/or novice visual researchers out there: the Sociological Imagination is pleased to announce its new column dedicated to “Visual Research”. To celebrate its beginning, we are launching a continuous call for reader submissions. The call is open… Read More ›
Providing meaning: give a little bit of the Sociological Imagination….
I was once asked by Mark Carrigan, editor of The Sociological Imagination, what I have learnt from studying Sociology, this was my brief response: “In a nutshell, Sociology has given me specific tools that have become invaluable to me personally… Read More ›
#UKRiots and Sociological Imagination
So with London in flames for the third night in a row and, for the first time, disturbances spreading outside of the capital, the British population are asking the natural question – what the fuck is going on? The most… Read More ›
Anarchism and The Sociological Imagination: An Interview with Dana Williams
I first came across Dana Williams and his work on an anarchist academics email list about three years ago. I was excited to find another person bringing anarchism and sociology together! There were, I believe, literally only a couple that… Read More ›
A sociological blog dedicated to ‘Humanity 2.0’
Recently a videoclip of me giving one of the first TEDx lectures at Warwick was posted here on ‘Humanity 2.0’, which is about changing definitions of the human, an issue central to the past, present and future of the social… Read More ›
When Sociology Was Cool
I got my doctorate in sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the exact same place C. Wright Mills got his doctorate in sociology. I know this because we shared some of the same professors there and, even more importantly, because… Read More ›
Follow SI on facebook and Twitter!
This is a reminder that the Sociological Imagination has a presence on facebook. Please do add us as a friend and feel free to get in contact. We’re always open to ideas and suggestions so please don’t hesitate if there’s… Read More ›
Call for Papers: what does the Sociological Imagination mean today?
It has been over 50 years since C. Wright Mills wrote the Sociological Imagination. In that time the world has changed beyond recognition: the Cold War ended, the Keynesian consensus broke down, a globalizing neoliberalism rose to the ascendancy and… Read More ›
A reminder about our two Calls for Papers
Social Research in an Age of Austerity A new coalition government pledges an unparalleled age of fiscal austerity and a new universities minister promises radical ‘reform’ of higher education: what does the future hold for the British university in an… Read More ›