"In this readable and compact introduction to one of the most significant social thinkers of the last one hundred years, Gianfranco Poggi examines closely all of Durkheim's 'canonical' works and assesses their significance today. Poggi also considers closely just what Durkheim meant by 'society' and assesses his contribution to both political sociology and the sociology of law, putting Durkheim's writings into the context of the generation of European scholars to which he belonged.

Poggi's clear and concise reappraisal of this towering figure in the development of modern sociological thought provides both an essential overview of his major writings and also illustrates just why Durkheim is still so widely read and debated a century after his death."--BOOK JACKET.