African American Pioneers of Sociology: A Critical History / Edition 1

by Pierre Saint-Arnaud, Peter Feldstein

Overview

In African American Pioneers of Sociology, Pierre Saint-Arnaud examines the lasting contributions that African Americans have made to the field of sociology. Arguing that science is anything but a neutral construct, he defends the radical stances taken by early African American sociologists from accusations of intellectual infirmity by foregrounding the racist historical context of the time these influential works were produced.

Examining key figures such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Edward Franklin Frazier, Charles Spurgeon Johnson, Horace Roscoe Cayton, J.G. St. Clair Drake, and Oliver Cromwell Cox, Saint-Arnaudreveals the ways in which many aspects of modern sociology emerged from these authors' radical views on race, gender, religion, and class. Beautifully translated from its original French, African American Pioneers of Sociology is a stunning examination of the influence of African American intellectuals and an essential work for understanding the origins of sociology as a modern discipline.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802094056
Publisher:	University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division
Publication date:	02/28/2009
Series:	Heritage Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	394
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Pierre Saint-Arnaud is a professor in the Department of Sociology at Université Laval. Peter Feldstein is a Montreal-based freelance translator who specializes in literature, politics, and the sciences.

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Introduction 3

Part 1 Anglo-American Sociology and the Race Question 13

1 From the Civil War to the First World War 15

Sociological Theories of Race 22

From Biological Racism to Cultural Racism 36

From Race Problem to Race Relations 40

2 The Rise of the Chicago School 45

Origins of a Scientific Hothouse: 1892-1914 47

The Parkian Era 49

Park's Theory of Race Relations 54

Alternative Positions in the Interwar Period 76

Park versus Warner: The Outcome of a Dispute 82

3 From the Second World War to the 1960s 85

The Sociopolitical Landscape 85

Race Relations after the War 88

An American Dilemma 90

Scholarly Reactions to Myrdal 103

Part 2 The Genesis of African American Sociology, 1896-1964 117

4 W.E.B. Du Bois: Scientific Sociology and Exclusion 121

Early Works 125

The Philadelphia Negro 131

Sources of Du Bois's Innovation 140

The Institution Builder 144

Controversy and Decline 148

A Limited Scientific Legacy 151

The Sociologist in His Time 154

5 Four 'New Negroes' 157

Johnson: The Activist as Organization Man 157

Cayton and Drake: Theorists of the Ghetto 167

Cox: Innovator and Iconoclast 186

6 Edward Franklin Frazier 204

The Committed Intellectual 208

The Emergence of a Social Scientist 212

Toward a More Radical Approach 216

The Poverty and Greatness of the Black Middle Class 225

For a Comparative World Sociology 231

The Importance of Theory 234

Frazier's Originality 246

Part 3 From Explanation to Comprehension 249

Two Sociologies, One Society 250

Breaking Down the Barriers: Racism in Academia 271

The Solace of Culture 285

Postface: Imagining a Different History295

Notes 299

Bibliography 345

Index 371

Editorial Reviews

'Du Bois, Frazier, Cox, and the other scholars examined in this book carried the burden of institutional racism throughout their lives. At the same time, with each of their works, they brought forward an entirely different representation of their true place in social science and society alike. Of course, there was no way for them to break down all the barriers of racial discrimination, but their constructive resistance to it was crucial to what scientific success they had. By refusing to internalize the degrading image of the black minority embodied in the dominant white model, by refusing to apply the stereotyping language of the Other to themselves, they succeeded in the task of inventing an original African American sociology.'—From African American Pioneers of Sociology
'This important and timely work makes an important contribution to discussions of how 'race' has been constructed in the human sciences and in American history.'—Sebastián Gil-Riaño, Scientia Canadensis, vol33:01:10
‘This book is an important addition for all who wish to understand the rise of American social science. The contributions of these ebony sociologists lead one to marvel at how such a sophisticated corpus of work could arise from the segregated and barely funded halls of Atlanta, Howard, Fisk, and Lincoln universities.’—Aldon Morris, Journal of American Ethnic History summer 2011

From the Publisher

‘This book is an important addition for all who wish to understand the rise of American social science. The contributions of these ebony sociologists lead one to marvel at how such a sophisticated corpus of work could arise from the segregated and barely funded halls of Atlanta, Howard, Fisk, and Lincoln universities.’

Journal of American Ethnic History - Aldon Morris

'This important and timely work makes an important contribution to discussions of how 'race' has been constructed in the human sciences and in American history.'

Scientia Canadensis, vol33:01:10 - Sebastián Gil-Riaño

'Du Bois, Frazier, Cox, and the other scholars examined in this book carried the burden of institutional racism throughout their lives. At the same time, with each of their works, they brought forward an entirely different representation of their true place in social science and society alike. Of course, there was no way for them to break down all the barriers of racial discrimination, but their constructive resistance to it was crucial to what scientific success they had. By refusing to internalize the degrading image of the black minority embodied in the dominant white model, by refusing to apply the stereotyping language of the Other to themselves, they succeeded in the task of inventing an original African American sociology.'

From African American Pioneers of Sociology

'This important and timely work makes an important contribution to discussions of how 'race' has been constructed in the human sciences and in American history.'

Scientia Canadensis, vol33:01:10 - Sebastián Gil-Riaño