Class Syllabus

Readings

Section I

 Introduction & Recapturing the Past

September 5  & September 10

Philip Abrams, "History, Sociology, Historical Sociology," Past and Present  87  (1980): 3-16

Charles Tilly, “Historical Sociology” prepared for the International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, June 1999.

Recapturing the Past

September 12 & September 17

Julian Barnes, Flaubert's Parrot .

Section II

 Reconstructing Causes and Conditions

September 19 & September 24 & September 26

Theda Skocpol, "Recurrent Strategies and Emerging Agendas in Historical Sociology," Chapter 11 of Vision and Method in Historical Sociology.

William Sewell, "Marc Bloch and the Logic of Comparative History," History and Theory 6 (1967): 208-18.

Reconstructing Causes and Conditions

October 1 & October 3

Anthony W. Marx, Making Race and Nation: A Comparison of the United States, South Africa and Brazil

Introduction, Parts I & II and Conclusion.

Section III

 Reconstructing Events

October 8 & October  10 & October 15

Ron Aminzade, “Historical Sociology and Time,” Sociological Methods and Research 20 (1992): 459-80.

Larry J. Griffin, “Temporality, Events and Explanation in Historical Sociology,” Sociological Methods and Research 20 (1992): 403-427.

William H. Sewell,  “Historical Events as Transformations of Structures: Inventing Revolution at the Bastille,” Theory and Society 25/26 (1996): 841-881.

Section IV

October 17 & October 22

 Reconstructing Practices

Norbert Elias, The Civilizing Process

Pp. 42-178

Reconstructing Practices

October 24 & October 29

Philippe Aries, Centuries of Childhood

Part I.

Section V

Reconstructing Relations

October 31

Charles Tilly, “Micro, Macro, or Megrim?” in Mikrogeschihte, Makrogeschichte: komplmentar oer inkommensurabel? Mit Beitragen von Maurizio Gribaudi, Giovanni Levi und Charles Tilly (Wallstein Verlag, 1998).

November 7 and November 12

Roger Gould, Insurgent Identities: Class, Community and Protest in Paris from 1848 to the Commune

Section VI

Papers

November 14 & November 19

November 21 & November 26

These two weeks will be spent discussing paper topics. By this date you need to have decided on a topic, discussed it with me or the TA and prepared a preliminary 10-15 minute exposition of the material you would like to use.

These presentations should be seen as a group effort to discuss and improve ongoing projects.

Section VII

Reconstructing Identities

November 28

Margaret Somers, "The Narrative Constitution of Identity: A Relational and Network Approach," Theory and Society 23 (1994): 605-649.

Rogers Brubaker and Frederick Cooper, “Beyond Identity” Theory and Society 29 (2000): 1-47.

Reconstructing Identities

December 3 and December 5

Marion Kaplan,  Between Dignity and Despair.

Conclusions

December 10