In this series of extended interviews with Chris Pierson, Giddens lays out the principal themes in the development of his social theory and the distinctive political agenda which he recommends.

Anthony Giddens has been described as 'the most important Englishsocial philosopher of our time'. Over twenty-five years, and evenmore books, he has established himself as the most widely-read andwidely-cited social theorist of his generation. His ideas haveprofoundly influenced the writing and teaching of sociology andsocial theory throughout the English-speaking world. In recentyears, his writing has become much more explicitly political, andin 1996 he took up his high-profile appointment as Director of theLondon School of Economics and Political Science. It is in this newposition and with these new political ideas that he has beendescribed as the key intellectual figure of New Labour in Britain.Following the astonishing success of Labour in the 1997 GeneralElection, his ideas have been the focus of intense interest. In this series of extended interviews with Chris Pierson, Giddenslays out with customary clarity and directness the principal themesin the development of his social theory and the distinctivepolitical agenda which he recommends. This volume will be of great interest to second- and third-yearstudents in sociology and social theory, politics and politicaltheory, as well as to the general reader.

Labour stands at a decisive point in its history. A change of leadership can help reinvigorate the party, but winning a fourth term of government will be impossible unless Labour's ideological position and policy outlook are thoroughly refurbished. What form should these innovations take?

'Before the current global era it is impossible to imagine that comparable events [like September 11] could have occurred, reflecting as they do our new-found interdependence. The rise of global terrorism, like world-wide networks involving in money-laundering, drug-running and other forums of organised crime, are all parts of the dark side of globalisation.' From the new Preface This book is based on the highly influential BBC Reith lecture series on globalisation delivered in 1999 by Anthony Giddens. Now updated with a new chapter addressing the post-September 11th global landscape, this book remains the intellectual benchmark on how globalisation is reshaping our lives. The changes are explored in five main chapters: * Globalisation * Risk * Tradition * Family * Democracy.

Three prominent social thinkers discuss how modern society is undercutting its formations of class, stratum, occupations, sex roles, the nuclear family, and more. Reflexive modernization, or the way one kind of modernization undercuts and changes another, has wide ranging implications for contemporary social and cultural theory, as this provocative book demonstrates.

The idea of finding a 'third way' in politics has been widely discussed over recent months - not only in the UK, but in the US, Continental Europe and Latin America. But what is the third way? Supporters of the notion haven't been able to agree, and critics deny the possibility altogether. Anthony Giddens shows that developing a third way is not only a possibility but a necessity in modern politics.

In this book Anthony Giddens addresses a range of issues concerning current developments in social theory, relating them to the prospects for sociology in the closing decades of the twentieth century. Composed of closely integrated papers, all written over the past few years, the book includes seven essays not previously published, plus two have not appeared in English before. In assessing the likely future evolution of sociology in particular, and the social sciences in general, the author both draws upon ideas established in his more abstract theoretical writings and examines critically competing traditions of thought. Those looking for an accessible introduction to Gidden's writing will find in this book a set of clear expositions of his basic ideas. By situating these ideas in relation to the critical assessment of the views of others, however, the author provides new sources of insight into the distinctiveness of his own claims.