Time: A Historical Sociology Perspective

Abstract

This review concerns Jiří Šubrt’s latest book The Sociology of Time: A Critical Overview (2021) and examines the text within the framework of sociological and historical sociological thought. Šubrt’s book attempts the ambitious task of summarising the ‘labyrinth of questions and answers’ [Šubrt 2021:1] surrounding the topic of time within the field of sociology. In doing so, the author provides a detailed exploration of various theoretical approaches to time which are drawn from his extensive knowledge of the historiography of sociological thought. Owing to his own theoretical background in processual and historical sociology, one of the core themes of The Sociology of Time is the concept of temporalized society as a distinct theoretical approach to the sociology of time. As a historical sociologist primarily focused on theoretical concepts, Šubrt presents us with an analysis of the attempts to understand time within theoretical paradigms. By offering a variety of sociological approaches and linking their various developments across the 20th century (and sometimes before), Šubrt is guiding the reading towards the conclusion that a sociology which lacks a temporalized grounding is theoretically insufficient.