1st Edition

The Social Role of the Man of Knowledge

By Florian Znaniecki Copyright 1986
    236 Pages
    by Routledge

    235 Pages
    by Routledge

    In this seminal contribution to the sociology of knowledge, first published in 1940, Florian Znaniecki develops a typology of the variety of specific social roles that scholars have played, and investigates the normative patterns that govern their behavior. A central tool for the investigation of these problems is the notion of “social circle”, the audience to which intellectuals address themselves. Znaniecki shows that thinkers do not speak to the total society but address selected segments and markets. Specific social circles bestow recognition, provide material or psychic support, and help shape the self-image of the thinker.

    Introduction, I. Sociology and Theory of Knowledge, II. Technologists and Sages, III. Schools and Scholars as Bearers of Absolute Truth, IV. The Explorer as Creator of New Knowledge, Index

    Biography

    Florian Znaniecki (1882-1958) was philosopher, sociologist, and forty-fourth president of the American Sociological Association. In 1920 he accepted the first Polish chair in sociology at Adam Mickiewicz University where he organized the Polish Sociological Institute. He was also lecturer at Columbia University from 1931-1933, and again in 1939. He is best known for the idea of culturalism, which is one of the ideas that helped found the thought of antipositivism.