The Sociology of Elites (Routledge Series in Social and Political Thought)

"The Sociology of Elites deals with the issue of the role of elites in society. In view of the continuing growth of the divide between the rich and the poor, people in many industrialized countries are asking questions about the responsibility of the elites for society. Are the activities of elites determined primarily by their responsibility for the common good of the population or by their interest in enlarging their own power and wealth?" "In answering this question the book presents an overview of the most important sociological elite theories, ranging from the classics in the field - Mosca, Michels, and Pareto - to authors such as Lasswell, Dahrendorf, and Keller, and including the determinative critical elite theorists Bourdieu and Mills. The book also looks at the world's five largest industrialized nations - the United States, France, Germany, the UK, and Japan - and shows through empirical analyses how the elites in the various countries, especially the political and economic elites, are recruited and how they cooperate with one another. Particular emphasis is put on the role played by educational institutions and the question of whether it is appropriate to speak of separate sectoral elites or of a ruling class."--Jacket.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.