Tomoo Otaka

Otaka was a prominent legal philosopher and forgotten social theorist. By reviving his main work in the 21st century, this book suggests that, through Schutz, Otaka's social theory can be linked to Bourdieu's sociology. This work is very contemporary, providing clues to thinking fundamentally about what social association is in mobile societies and of mobile lives. Naoki Iso, Tokyo University of the Arts.

Derek Robbins has produced not only a superb translation of Grundlegung der Lehre vom sozialen Verband, but also a thought-provoking introduction to this major study. The cross-cultural perspectives offered in the four commentaries are highly original and illustrate the relevance of Otaka's Grundlegung to the critical study of contemporary societies.

This terrific volume provides a long-overdue translation of one of Tomoo Otaka's most important works. Derek Robbins has produced not only a superb translation of Grundlegung der Lehre vom sozialen Verband, but also a thought-provoking introduction to this major study, which has been largely overlooked, for far too long, by English-speaking scholars in the humanities and social sciences. In conjunction with Robbins's stimulating Bourdieusian reading, the cross-cultural perspectives offered in the four - highly original - commentaries included in this volume illustrate the profound relevance of Otaka's Grundlegung to the critical study of contemporary societies. Simon Susen - City, University of London