Prelims

Half Title Page

The Sociological Inheritance of the 1960s

Endorsement Page

[Šubrt] skillfully situates his work in the concerns and events of historical time, geographical space and political power. Specifically, he clarifies how US, as well as Western and Eastern European, political and economic structures shaped and legitimised specific ways of thinking. Especially informative and powerful for analysing today’s historically situated social problems, Dr Šubrt’s work provides the context needed to better understand the development and use of sociological theory, as well as society itself.

— Dawn Norris, Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, USA

Understanding the 1960s as a decade of hope and a call for radical change, Šubrt masterfully makes astute observations outside of ideas already posited, using language that demonstrates that sociologists are not only dry repeaters of previous thinkers, but instead creative, thoughtful minds, reflecting on society and how it can move forward, even if there is no clear trajectory where that forward might take us. The Sociological Inheritance of the 1960s is a useful tool for sociologists as both a reference and as a means to better understand their field, giving credence to the value of historical sociology and placing social phenomena in its appropriate time and place along with context. This is done to the benefit of all, demonstrating that the past, present and future are all connected in a continuum, showcasing that the present state of sociology did not arise out of nowhere.

— Haylee Behrends, Instructor in History, Political Science, and Sociology, Western Technical College, USA

Title Page

The Sociological Inheritance of the 1960s: Historical Reflections on a Decade of Changing Thought

BY

JIŘÍ ŠUBRT

Charles University, Czech Republic

United Kingdom – North America – Japan – India – Malaysia – China

Copyright Page

Emerald Publishing Limited

Emerald Publishing, Floor 5, Northspring, 21-23 Wellington Street, Leeds LS1 4DL.

First edition 2024

Copyright © 2024 Jiří Šubrt.

Published under exclusive licence by Emerald Publishing Limited.

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-80382-806-0 (Print)

ISBN: 978-1-80382-805-3 (Online)

ISBN: 978-1-80382-807-7 (Epub)

Contents

List of Reviewers

Assoc Prof Dr Dawn Norris, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

Dr Haylee Behrends, Western Technical College, La Crosse

Acknowledgements

The author of this book was still a child during the period it considers. Despite this – or perhaps, precisely because of it – it had a significant impact, etched in his memory, and became an important stage in the formation of his personality. Not only the memories, but everything subsequently learned about the 1960s, significantly shaped his attitudes and interests over the decades which ensued. For these reasons, certain aspects of the author’s personality and life experience are reflected in the content of this book, while its intention is primarily to be a professional text. Moreover, although the main goal is to convey the general characteristics of the sociological thinking of the 1960s, it was unthinkable to the author not to mention – albeit very briefly – what was happening in his homeland at the time, i.e. primarily the period of the so-called Prague spring and the subsequent invasion of Warsaw Pact troops in August 1968.

The sad truth remains that most of those who personally shared with the author their memories of the 1960s during his youth and university studies are no longer with us. To all of them, although not mentioned here by name, his thanks are due. Special thanks go to his longtime language advisor and editor, Ed Everett, whose assistance underpinned the finalisation of this work.