Hardly any other criminologists have addressed the question of the end of the social with the range of creativity and imagination in today's epoch of the post-financial economic crash that Simon Winlow and Steve Hall can assemble. Rethinking Social Exclusion maps a precise route between and beyond the dual traditions of Europe - social exclusion as a phenomenon produced by the rise of neoliberalism - and the United States - social exclusion as an experience shaped by urban segregation.
As an intervention in the contemporary theory of poverty, Winlow and Hall’s work is powerful.
The importance of Winlow and Hall's elaboration of this thesis should not be left understated... the book successfully engages with a broad range of sociological, political and criminological literatures, underlining the authors' ability to transcend disciplinary boundaries. Overall, this is a useful, insightful and engaging book which succeeds in its aim to provide a theoretical framework for thinking through possible opposition to the current neoliberal hegemony.
This is particularly scary characterization of social exclusion... Instructors looking for a graduate-level text for a theory or policy-oriented class in sociology or criminology will not be disappointed. I hope that this vital contribution for understanding today’s world is read by many and debated vigorously.
This is an uncompromising, and in places bleak, book that puts the concept of social exclusion on a new plane of understanding. It challenges the reader to consider whether we are facing the end of the social as a space of human existence. Anyone who wants a new understanding of social exclusion, who is concerned with the impact of social disintegration on people and communities, and is committed to the struggle for a just society, should read it.
Rethinking Social Exclusion contains more than a radical message and an original and challenging theoretical framework. Expositions, discussions and critiques of 'social exclusion studies', 'underclass theories', cultures of consumerism, neo-liberal capitalism, markets and pro-social space (as exemplified by derelict city centres) are all interwoven... The authors handle their impressive range of philosophical reference with ease and they write with a verve and commitment to deconstructive analysis that I found simulating...
Winlow and Hall have now long proved to be amongst the most astute academic commentators on contemporary social conditions. In 'Rethinking Social Exclusion' they have once again produced a truly innovative, engaging and provocative text full of new insight and original thinking. This will no doubt become the guide for social scientists looking to heed their call and think anew on the blunt imbalances inherent in contemporary capitalism, and the stark marginalisation at the ever expanding social fringes that characterise these turbulent times.
Rethinking Social Exclusion is classic Winlow and Hall - bleak, brilliant and unmatched in the art of fundamentally rethinking crucial social issues in a way that is simultaneously enlightening and, at times, rather scary. They nail down and fundamentally reconstruct the concept of 'social exclusion' with such intellectual flair, originality and precision that we must now wonder why we haven't been thinking about it like this all along. This outstanding book is more than simply 'ground-breaking', it shakes the conceptual foundations of the social scientific discipline.
I had long regarded 'social exclusion' to be another zombie-concept, a notion so inflected with the ideological baggage of the discredited New Labour hegemonic project that it retained no analytic or political purchase whatsoever. This book has changed my mind. The 'rethinking' of the concept offered here is so fundamental and done with such theoretical verve that I am sure many others will be similarly convinced.
Simon Winlow and Steve Hall, outriders of a radically different policial economy for our era, have done it again. Their latest book is the critical criminology book of the decade so far, and the best account of capitalism since the 2007/8 crash. Rethinking Social Exclusion: The End of the Social? is an intellectual tour de force. A must read for anyone interested in the reproletarianisation of the West and global capitalism’s rush to the cliff edge of catastrophe.
Winlow and Hall make exemplary use of critical theory to tear down the Wizard of Oz-like curtain that normally shrouds social exclusion debates. By doing so, they highlight the cultural devastation enabled by myopic policy wonks and Fabian corporate quislings. This book represents a powerful, rallying response to Walter Benjamin's notion that "It is only for the sake of those without a hope that hope is given to us"
I think this book will go over the heads of my undergrads. It is interesting, but just a little too inaccessible for young students new to scholarly writing/reading.
The book was well reviewed on CrimeTalk and it will make a welcome addition to my sociology of crime and deviance reading lists because of its contemporary and strong analysis of social exclusion.
good book which explores the root cause of exclusion and helps student to think beyond. Sections of the book used to prepare lectures and student reading
Such a refreshing, engaging text, especially in the advancing tide of neoliberal discourse permeating many aspects of social life. I particularly liked the call for social researchers to resist acting as mere 'gun dogs, flushing out and retrieving' data for funders to fit neatly into their pre-determined agendas.
A provocative and engaging critical approach that expands the debate on social exclusion beyond the disappointingly narrow bounds within which it is usually conducted.
A very impressive text. Thorough coverage of a great deal of information and thought provoking concepts.Writing style engages readers throughout.
This is an excellent book that highlights the key debates in society.
Of late analysis of social exclusion has been trapped by debilitating political and academic inertia. This book is a game-changer; it engages in stunningly acerbic analysis to re-catalyse critical debate regarding issues that policy-makers and society alike will ignore at their peril.
Excellent text for students in social work programmes - relevant across many areas of practice, policy and theory. Highly recommended.
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