Robert Nisbet

by Brad Lowell Stone

"Brad Lowell Stone's Robert Nisbet is a examination of an influential twentieth-century sociologist and social thinker. Nisbet achieved prominence in 1953 with his landmark book, The Quest for Community. Therein, he asserted that the twentieth century's preoccupation with community is a result of the erosion of intermediate institutions - the family, neighborhoods, religious associations, and voluntary groups - precipitated by the structure and activities of the modern state. Such intermediary institutions traditionally served as a protective social layer between the individual and the power of the state, providing a foundation for genuine freedom. This core insight of Nisbet's has grown ever more relevant in the past half-century.". "In this biography, Stone equips readers with a sketch of Robert Nisbet's life and influences, and then takes them on a journey through Nisbet's account of the plight of community in the modern world. Stone's even-handed analysis is illuminating for both l