This book focuses on the important work of Karl Mannheim by demonstrating how his theoretical conception of a reflexive sociology took shape as a collaborative empirical research program. The authors show how contemporary work along these lines, whether derived from Foucault, Bourdieu or other theorists, can benefit from the insights of Mannheim and his students into both morphology and genealogy.Inspired by recent receptions of Karl Mannheim that do not restrict themselves to familiar arguments about the sociology of knowledge, the book contains three themes. First it offers a new reading of Mannheim's 'empirical' project, with emphasis on his lifelong dialogue with Max Weber. Special attention is paid to his article on 'economic ambition.' Second, the book analyzes the work arising out of Mannheim's Frankfurt research group, notably the early writings of Norbert Elias, Hans Speier, and Hans Gerth, as well as dissertations by Mannheim's students, including studies of newspapers, women's household roles, sentimentalism in women's literature, relations between female social workers and male bureaucrats, exile, Jewish assimilation, and Liberal 'cultivation.' Finally, the book contributes to the microsociology of knowledge, uncovering the modalities that made for an open working group in Frankfurt that was expressly not a school.The book returns Mannheim's sociology of knowledge inquiries into the broader context of a wider project in historical and cultural sociology, whose promising development was disrupted and then partially obscured by the expulsion of Mannheim's intellectual generation. It is about Karl Mannheim as he served his most productive - and independent - students and not as he has been stereotyped in the literature. As such, it will appeal to sociologists concerned with the contemporary relevance of his work, and who are prepared for a fresh look at Weimar sociology and the legacy of Max Weber.

Contents

Series Editor’s Preface vii

Preface xi

List of Abbreviations xiii

About the Authors xv

Introduction 1

1 The Challenging Context 9

2 Time and Place 23

3 The Social Structure of Advancement: Education for Life in

the Economy 33

4 The “Intensive Study Group” Around Karl Mannheim 57

5 Norbert Elias and the Sociology of External Forms 75

6 Hans Gerth and Hans Weil: The Genealogy of the

Liberal Bildungselite 85

7 Käthe Truhel and the Idea of a Social Bureaucracy 101

8 Natalie Halperin and Margarete Freudenthal: The Genealogy

of Women’s Movements 117

9 Jacob Katz: Sociology of the Stranger I 131

10 Nina Rubinstein: Sociology of the Stranger II 141

11 Individual Projects and Orphans 153

12 The Unfinished Business Between Karl Mannheim and Max Weber 187

Bibliography 197

Index 207