Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 303.30973 EAN: 9780195133547 ISBN: 0195133544 Label: Oxford University Press, USA Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 448 Publication Date: February 17, 2000 Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA Sales Rank: 47057 Studio: Oxford University Press, USA
Product DescriptionFirst published in 1956, The Power Elite stands as a contemporary classic of social science and social criticism. C. Wright Mills examines and critiques the organization of power in the United States, calling attention to three firmly interlocked prongs of power: the military, corporate, and political elite. The Power Elite can be read as a good account of what was taking place in America at the time it was written, but its underlying question of whether America is as democratic in practice as it is in theory continues to matter very much today.
What The Power Elite informed readers of in 1956 was how much the organization of power in America had changed during their lifetimes, and Alan Wolfe's astute afterword to this new edition brings us up to date, illustrating how much more has changed since then. Wolfe sorts out what is helpful in Mills book and which of his predictions have not come to bear, laying out the radical changes in American capitalism, from intense global competition and the collapse of communism to rapid technological transformations and ever changing consumer tastes. The Power Elite has stimulated generations of readers to think about the kind of society they have and the kind of society they might want, and deserves to be read by every new generation.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Excellent book for the Sociology student
Any student of sociology will love this book. C. Wright Mills was a man ahead of his time as well as true radical in his thinking. He spells out what we are experiencing today. A must reading for the serious sociology student or the student of society today.
Rating: - Still Correct after 50 Years
C. Wright Mills was a prophet without honor during his lifetime.
Rereading this work after almost 50 years should be a wake-up call to arms against those forces who seek to control our nation for their, not our benefit.
Rating: - Not a page turner. More like literary granola
I first read C. Wright Mills' The Power Elite as a sociology student in the 70s. This is a densely written analysis of the intersecting circles of military brass, professional politicians, and corporate executives. It is particularly germane in our current economic crisis and the leadership vacuum that led us here.
Make another pot of coffee. It'll keep you awake in the really slow spots. Otherwise, the more thought-provoking chapters will have you seething with anger and outrage. And ... Read More
Rating: - Sociology or Conspiracy Theory?
I want to preface this reaction by saying I do not have any all inclusive argument with Mills, partly because I think The Power Elite is a gigantic waste of the almost 400 pages it is printed on. Instead I will describe my 3 biggest problems with his and the others that we read for this week: 1) I have lost all (of the little I had beyond the weathermen) respect for the leaders of SDS if this really was their major text; 2) Mills fails in his attempt to separate the three structures of power which ... Read More
Rating: - Superb Book
This could be the best book I've ever read (although I also loved Zinn's People's History and Sheldon Wolin's Democracy Inc.). I am absolutely amazed at how Mills' 52 year old writings contain so many insights into today's military/corporate/political government. As I watched John McCain promise to cut out all spending except for military and veterans' expenditures last night, and then heard about congress meeting secretly to draft wall street bailout legislation, I wondered how in the world could ... Read More
- Excellent book for the Sociology student
- Not a page turner. More like literary granola
- Sociology or Conspiracy Theory?
