The Unpublished History of Sociology

Session Submission Type: Invited Session (90 minute)

Description

Most histories of sociology and social thought are actually histories of sociological theory that rely on published works. How do these narratives change when unpublished texts are taken into account? What correctives do archival materials enable, and what occlusions do they create or exacerbate? Why are some sociologists’ papers archived but not others? What counts as archival material? How can archives be constructed around (or in spite of) sealed papers and missing items? This session features scholars who work with archives in various ways: exploring the papers of sociologists and social theorists; tracing the influence of sociology and sociologists on government bureaucracy and professional associations; and assembling an archive of social critics (who may or may not have been sociologists). By reflecting on these and other issues, the session advances the section's mission to obtain information about the location of archival materials as well as support efforts to expand such research resources and to preserve documents important to the history of sociology and social thought.

Sub Unit

• History of Sociology and Social Thought Section / The Unpublished History of Sociology

Presider

• Lisa McCormick, University of Edinburgh

Individual Presentations

• Archives at the Margins of Sociology: G.D.H. Cole and Horace Cayton - Matt Dawson, University of Glasgow

• Why Archives Matter: Reconstructing the Continuity and Seriousness of Garfinkel’s Work from Unpublished Materials - Anne Warfield Rawls, Bentley University and University of Siegen

• Defamiliarising Bauman: On Archiving a Displaced Public Sociologist - Jack Palmer, University of Leeds

• Archives of Dissent, Altered: Intersectional Critique in Music Centred Communities and Movements under Late State-Socialism - Jennifer Ramme, University of Graz

• Racial Categories, Risk Assessment and Real Estate: Long-Term Impacts of US National Housing Act of 1934 - Waverly Duck, University of California-Santa Barbara

Session Organizer

• Lisa McCormick, University of Edinburgh