Social Stratification: Class, Race, and Gender in Sociological Perspective

Grusky has put together an excellent introduction to the study of social stratification. Coming in at slightly over 1,000 pages, this book has a little something on everything. To Grusky's credit, he also includes some contemporary theories that have only been lightly tested and may not ultimately prove to have much applicable value in the interests of providing a thorough analysis of the questions and issues surrounding stratification. Well worth the time and money.

Last year I completed a course titled "Social Stratification" at Whitman College. After completing the class I decided to keep this book for my own personal collection, and I often refer back to the articles for pleasure reading (I'm a nerd, this probably isn't normal for this text). For our class, this giant reader was our bible, providing us with a wealth of articles that ranged from philosophical to research based to purely academic to personal accounts. The book is well balanced, looking at a multitude of issues from every level of study. After finishing this course, and completing this book, I am now considering pursuing a masters or doctorate in sociology with a focus on class studies. Highly recommended!

Social Stratification In Sociological Perspective is a college-level treatise on social issues affecting class, race and gender appears in its second edition to discuss the evolving field of stratification. College students will find a survey of stratification research, with articles in different sections examining the field and its broader issues and controversies. This comprehensive reader may well serve as a classroom text on the topic for sociology courses.

I am currently enrolled in a class taught by Prof. Grusky entitled "Social Stratification" at Cornell University. The man is very much like the reader; his interests are inspired out of the thinking academic not the impassioned activist. The reader itself is a compellation of primary sources which range from Marx to Shills to Aage Sorensen, to contemporary critiques. True, the text is dense at times, but it dutifully presents sociology in the best distilled, raw light. As Grusky writes in his course outline: " As we all know, issues of inequality are every day fare in conventional journalism (e.g newspaper, television), but such fare often rests on a naive understanding of stratification systems. The object of this course is to rise above such standard formulations and examine the powerful models, methods, and concepts that serious scholars of inequality have deployed."

While Grusky's reader is not for the faint of heart, this collection is essential for anyone who wishes to become well read in the major developments of social stratification. Given the density and complexity of many of the readings, the volume is perhaps better suited to graduate students or advanced undergraduates.