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The Most Influential Sociology Books Ever Written

As a trained sociologist and avid List Challenges user, I have continually searched for a list of influential sociological texts to utilize and refer to. I finally decided to create my own such list on important books in sociology, using the website List Muse as my primary reference. Although this list includes some rather obscure titles, it is intended for everyone with an interest in sociology, from beginner students to experienced professionals. Enjoy this list and hopefully you discover one or two works that interest you!
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from listmuse.com · made by Melanie Feder
avg. score: 3 of 100 (3%)
required scores: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 
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Sociological Imagination (C Wright Mills)
Sociological Imagination
1
C Wright Mills
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (Max Weber)
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism
2
Max Weber
The Social Construction of Reality (Peter L. Berger & Thomas Luckmann)
The Social Construction of Reality
3
Peter L. Berger & Thomas Luckmann
Mind, Self and Society (George Herbert Mead)
Mind, Self and Society
4
George Herbert Mead
Suicide (Emile Durkheim)
Suicide
5
Emile Durkheim
Capital (Karl Marx)
Capital
6
Karl Marx
The Sources of Social Power: Volume 1, a History of Power From the Beginning to AD 1760 (Michael Mann)
The Sources of Social Power: Volume 1, a History of Power From the Beginning to AD 1760
7
Michael Mann
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (Erving Goffman)
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life
8
Erving Goffman
A Theory of Communicative Action (Jurgen Habermas)
A Theory of Communicative Action
9
Jurgen Habermas
Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste (Pierre Bourdieu)
Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste
10
Pierre Bourdieu
The Civilizing Process (Norbert Elias)
The Civilizing Process
11
Norbert Elias
The Structure of Social Action (Talcott Parsons)
The Structure of Social Action
12
Talcott Parsons
Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison (Michel Foucault)
Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison
13
Michel Foucault
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (Thomas S. Kuhn)
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
14
Thomas S. Kuhn
The Philosophy of Money (Georg Simmel)
The Philosophy of Money
15
Georg Simmel
The Risk Society: Towards a New Modernity (Ulrich Beck)
The Risk Society: Towards a New Modernity
16
Ulrich Beck
Labor and Monopoly Capital (Harry Braverman)
Labor and Monopoly Capital
17
Harry Braverman
Origins of the Modern World System (Immanuel Wallerstein)
Origins of the Modern World System
18
Immanuel Wallerstein
Selections From the Prison Notebooks (Antonio Gramsci)
Selections From the Prison Notebooks
19
Antonio Gramsci
The Origins of Totalitarianism (Hannah Arendt)
The Origins of Totalitarianism
20
Hannah Arendt
The Gift (Marcel Mauss)
The Gift
21
Marcel Mauss
The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time (Karl Polanyi)
The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time
22
Karl Polanyi
Reading Capital (Louis Althusser)
Reading Capital
23
Louis Althusser
Social Systems (Niklas Luhmann)
Social Systems
24
Niklas Luhmann
The Lonely Crowd (David Riesman)
The Lonely Crowd
25
David Riesman
Outsiders (Howard S. Becker)
Outsiders
26
Howard S. Becker
Sociology (Anthony Giddens & Phillip W Sutton)
Sociology
27
Anthony Giddens & Phillip W Sutton
Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy (Barrington Moore Jr.)
Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy
28
Barrington Moore Jr.
China Transformed (R. Bin Wong)
China Transformed
29
R. Bin Wong
Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community (Robert Putnam)
Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community
30
Robert Putnam
Dialectic of Enlightenment (Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno)
Dialectic of Enlightenment
31
Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno
Men and Women of the Corporation (Rosabeth Moss Kanter)
Men and Women of the Corporation
32
Rosabeth Moss Kanter
Tristes Tropiques (Claude Lévi-Strauss)
Tristes Tropiques
33
Claude Lévi-Strauss
The Logic of Collective Action: Public Goods and the Theories of Groups (Mancur Olson)
The Logic of Collective Action: Public Goods and the Theories of Groups
34
Mancur Olson
The Interpretation of Cultures (Clifford Geertz)
The Interpretation of Cultures
35
Clifford Geertz
Eros and Civilization (Herbert Marcuse)
Eros and Civilization
36
Herbert Marcuse
The Long Twentieth Century (Giovanni Arrighi)
The Long Twentieth Century
37
Giovanni Arrighi
Critique of Everyday Life (Henri Lefebvre)
Critique of Everyday Life
38
Henri Lefebvre
Civilization and Capitalism
Civilization and Capitalism
39
Ideology and Utopia (Karl Mannheim)
Ideology and Utopia
40
Karl Mannheim
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