"Katherine Lynch's study of the French state's response to a crisis of working-class families illustrates a new sophistication in our understanding of the complex origins of social policy. She looks at middle-class reformers' formulation of social policy affecting illegitimacy, child abandonment, and child labor and examines the implementation of these policies in three major factory towns--Lille, Mulhouse, and Rouen--in the quarter century before the revolution of 1848. . . . This is a most valuable book that seeks to understand both the politics of reform and the ways in which reformist policies change in the process of implementation. It presents a sophisticated exploration of important issues."--Journal of Economic History

El documento reflexiona sobre las nuevas formas de convivencia de la sociedad actual, es decir de las nuevas formas de familia. La autora da una vision de la familia desde una perspectiva feminista, historica y antropologica. Las preguntas que se plantea son: Como se ha modificado el papel de la familia en las ultimas decadas, la importancia del patriarcado, si el concepto de familia es universal, el porque la gente contrae matrimonio y tiene hijos, el papel que juega el estado en la familia, y finalmente se cuestiona si el concepto de familia como tal, esta entrando en una etapa de crisis.

An experienced teacher of courses on the sociology of the family, D.H.J. Morgan frequently encounters a gulf between ‘the family’ as it is often treated in sociological texts and ‘the family’ as it is usually experienced. In this book he provides an extremely valuable bridge between the two by presenting an encounter between some of the mainstream theoretical approaches and concerns in the sociology of the family and what he terms as ‘critical’ perspectives on the family. This is the first British book on a basic social institution that takes into account the literature outside the mainstream of sociological analysis that deals with the subject. The first half examines the varieties of functional theorizing embedded in many texts, the over-concern with the question of kinship in modern society and the treatment of the family as a ‘success story’. In the second half Dr Morgan presents a critical account of some of the counter-theories: those derived from the radical feminist movement, the existential psycho-analytical approach associated with Laing, and the critical analyses of sex in an advanced capitalist society. A final chapter suggests some themes and orientations, derived from this encounter of theoretical approaches and modern perspectives, which can be usefully developed.

Publisher Description

Explores the hypothesis that family structure is a key factor in the development of social and political systems.

In the months leading up to the 2016 presidential election, liberal outcry over ethnonationalist views promoted a vision of America as a nation of immigrants. Given the pervasiveness of this rhetoric, it can be easy to overlook the fact that the immigrant rights movement began in the US relatively recently. This book tells the story of its grassroots origins, through its meteoric rise to the national stage. Starting in the 1990s, the immigrant rights movement slowly cohered over the demand for comprehensive federal reform of immigration policy. Activists called for a new framework of citizenship, arguing that immigrants deserved legal status based on their strong affiliation with American values. During the Obama administration, leaders were granted unprecedented political access and millions of dollars in support. The national spotlight, however, came with unforeseen pressures—growing inequalities between factions and restrictions on challenging mainstream views. Such tradeoffs eventually shattered the united front. The Immigrant Rights Movement tells the story of a vibrant movement to change the meaning of national citizenship, that ultimately became enmeshed in the system that it sought to transform.

The author is convinced that there is a ruling class in America today. He examines the American power structure as it has developed in the 1980s. He presents systematic, empirical evidence that a fixed group of privileged people dominates the American economy and government. The book demonstrates that an upper class comprising only one-half of one percent of the population occupies key positions within the corporate community. It shows how leaders within this "power elite" reach government and dominate it through processes of special-interest lobbying, policy planning and candidate selection. It is written not to promote any political ideology, but to analyze our society with accuracy.