Being human: the problem of agency

New York: Cambridge University Press (2000)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Humanity and the very notion of the human subject are under threat from postmodernist thinking which has declared not only the 'Death of God' but also the 'Death of Man'. This book is a revindication of the concept of humanity, rejecting contemporary social theory that seeks to diminish human properties and powers. Archer argues that being human depends on an interaction with the real world in which practice takes primacy over language in the emergence of human self-consciousness, thought, emotionality and personal identity - all of which are prior to, and more basic than, our acquisition of a social identity. This original and provocative new book from leading social theorist Margaret S. Archer builds on the themes explored in her previous books Culture and Agency (CUP 1988) and Realist Social Theory (CUP 1995). It will be required reading for academics and students of social theory, cultural theory, political theory, philosophy and theology.

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 99,596

External links

  • This entry has no external links. Add one.
Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Being Human: The Problem of Agency.Don Seeman - 2003 - Common Knowledge 9 (1):167-168.
The subject of human being.Christopher W. Haley - 2019 - New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.
The Subject of Human Being.Chris Haley - 2016 - New York: Routledge.
Unsettling Humanity: A Critique of Archer's Being Human.Thembi Luckett - 2008 - Journal of Critical Realism 7 (2):297-313.

Analytics

Added to PP
2009-01-28

Downloads
2 (#2,006,489)

6 months
2 (#1,763,654)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Citations of this work

Routine, Reflexivity, and Realism.Margaret S. Archer - 2010 - Sociological Theory 28 (3):272 - 303.
Normativity and naturalism as if nature mattered.Andrew Sayer - 2019 - Journal of Critical Realism 18 (3):258-273.
References.John Bengson & Marc A. Moffett - 2011 - In John Bengson & Marc A. Moffett (eds.), Knowing How: Essays on Knowledge, Mind, and Action. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press USA. pp. 361-386.

View all 165 citations / Add more citations

References found in this work

No references found.

Add more references