The Anthem Companion to Robert Park: (Anthem Companions to Sociology)

The Anthem Companion to Robert Park comes to terms with Robert Park’s legacy. This companion focuses largely on the work rather than the man, a major figure in American sociology during the first half of the past century, and encourages readers to consider the virtue of rethinking—and rereading—the much maligned and frequently misunderstood Park. Despite the fact that he wrote with exemplary clarity, Park’s work has often been ignored by contemporary sociologists. The contributions in this companion embrace no singular response to Park, but rather present a broad range of responses, generally appreciative but also critical.

Table of Contents:
Introduction. The Legacy of Robert Ezra Park, Peter Kivisto; Chapter 1. A Twisted Path: Park, Gender and Praxis, Mary Jo Deegan; Chapter 2. Robert Park’s Journey into Sociology, Martin Bulmer; Chapter 3. Beyond “Get the Seat of Your Pants Dirty in Real Research”: Park on Methods, Raymond M. Lee; Chapter 4. The Basic Components of Social Action: Mead versus Park, Lonnie Athens; Chapter 5. Robert E. Park: Neglected Social Psychologist, Donald C. Reitzes; Chapter 6. Robert E. Park’s Theory of Assimilation and Beyond, Peter Kivisto; Chapter 7. Robert Park’s Marginal Man: The Career of a Concept in American Sociology, Chad Alan Goldberg; Chapter 8. Marginality, Racial Politics and the Sociology of Knowledge: Robert Park and Critical Race Theory, Vince Marotta; Chapter 9. The Cities of Robert Ezra Park: Toward a Periodization of His Conception of the Metropolis (1915– 39), Coline Ruwet; Chapter 10. The Impact of Robert E. Park on American Sociology of Religion, Anthony J. Blasi; Chronology; Contributors; Index.

About the Author :
Peter Kivisto is the Richard A. Swanson Professor of Social Thought at Augustana College, USA, and co-director of the Research Laboratory on Transnationalism and Migration Processes at St. Petersburg State University, Russia. The author of several books, articles and chapters, his recent works include National Identity in an Age of Migration (2016); Solidarity, Justice, and Incorporation: Thinking through the Civil Sphere (coeditor, 2015); and Religion and Immigration: Migrant Faiths in North America and Western Europe (2014).

Review :
Symbolic Interaction The Anthem Companions to Sociology offers wide ranging and masterly overviews of the works of major sociologists. The volumes in the series provide authoritative and critical appraisals of key figures in modern social thought. These books, written and edited by leading figures, are essential additional reading on the history of sociology. — Gerard Delanty, Professor of Sociology, University of Sussex, Brighton This ambitious series provides an intellectually thoughtful introduction to the featured social theorists and offers a comprehensive assessment of their legacy. Each edited collection synthesizes the many dimensions of the respective theorist’s contributions and sympathetically ponders the various nuances in and the broader societal context for their body of work. The series will be appreciated by seasoned scholars and students alike. — Michele Dillon, Professor of Sociology and Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, University of New Hampshire The orchestration and emergence of the Anthem Companions to Sociology represent a formidable and invaluable achievement. Each companion explores the scope, ingenuity, and conceptual subtleties of the works of a theorist indispensable to the sociological project. The editors and contributors for each volume are the very best in their fields, and they guide us towards the richest, most creative seams in the writings of their thinker. The results, strikingly consistent from one volume to the next, brush away the years, reanimate what might have been lost, and bring numerous rays of illumination to the most pressing challenges of the present. — Rob Stones, Professor of Sociology, Western Sydney University, Australia The Anthem Companions, those that have appeared already and those that are to come, will give every sociologist a handy and authoritative guide to all the giants of their discipline. — Stephen Mennell, Professor Emeritus, University College Dublin Each volume of the Anthem Companions to Sociology examines comprehensively not only a theorist’s distinct approach and unique contributions, but also situates each in reference to the major parameters of mainstream theoretical schools and traditions. This remarkable Series in addition throws into high relief the singular features of modern societies. It promises to set the standard for discussions of Sociology’s long-term development and belongs on the shelves of every social scientist.— Stephen Kalberg, Professor of Sociology Emeritus, Boston University  This valuable series covers both familiar figures in the history of sociology (such as Max Weber and, prospectively, Marx and Durkheim) and less often treated ones such as Arendt and Troeltsch who are also highly relevant to sociology, broadly conceived. In these books, leading scholars explore important but often neglected aspects of their subjects’ work. — William Outhwaite, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Newcastle University, UK