Building Blocs How Parties Organize Society

"This brief but important edited volume introduces a new perspective in the study of political parties . . . The innovative and refreshing approach makes this book highly recommended for students of political parties in both established and developing democracies."-H. Shambayati, CHOICE "This is the rare edited volume that presents itself as a manifesto for a new school of thought. The combination of an agenda-setting statement with empirical case studies allows the book to make an effective and forceful case for the political articulation approach."-Isaac William Martin, Professor of Sociology, University of California - San Diego "Building Blocs is a powerful counter to sociological arguments that present politics as a reflection of social ties and identities. Parties, in this analysis, actively articulate identities, cleavages, and interests that sustain and are sustained by the governments they make. Ranging across continents and centuries, addressing cases of both successful and failed articulation, the chapters underscore the importance of parties in structuring the relationships between states and civil society. With this tightly-integrated volume, de Leon, Desai and Tugal establish a compelling agenda for political sociology."-Elisabeth S. Clemens, University of Chicago "Building Blocs breaks new ground in our understanding of political parties. The original studies assembled in this volume demonstrate that parties are not only an important part of the political landscape but are also-more provocatively-vital sources for its transformation. This is a must read for students of politics."-Howard Kimeldorf, Professor of Sociology, University of Michigan "Building Blocs offers a thought-provoking and creative sociological rethinking of the role of political parties not just in politics but in society. The volume will be a useful addition for scholars of parties, identity, and mobilization and is appropriate for upper-level undergraduate or graduate courses on these issues. Moreover, the framework presented will help to spur and structure a continuing neo-Gramscian agenda in the social sciences, of exploring the nature of hegemony and the interplay of civil and political society in a comparative perspective."-Meredith L. Weiss, American Journal of Sociology