Searching, independent, critical and passionate, Franco Ferrarotti writes with the keenest theoretical eye and with profound historical understanding. The remarkably wide-ranging studies collected here display the sociological imagination at its brightest. As a singular whole, this collection offers a veritable education in social theory and the logic of social inquiry.

Sidney Plotkin, Professor of Political Science, Vassar College and President, International Thorstein Veblen Association

This book of essays provides an important contribution on a wide range of topics and problems of theory, culture, and society in the late 20th Century. It reflects the professional interest of a scintillating and insightful critic of contemporary cultural trends and sociological theories, Franco Ferrarotti, who is known on both sides of the Atlantic as a leading European sociologist and a foremost commentator on the crises of the Western European societies.

Angela Zanotti, professor of sociology, University of Ferrara, Italy