The sociologist Alain Touraine, theorist of post-industrial society, has died

PARIS. The French sociologist Alain Touraine, a leading figure on the international intellectual scene, a famous theorist of post-industrial society, died in Paris this morning, Friday 9 June, at the age of 97. The announcement of his disappearance was given by the family to the newspaper Le Monde. Touraine has mainly dealt with industrial sociology and in particular with the levels of “consciousness” of the working class, as well as with “social movements” and has also produced important contributions to the theory of social action.

He was born on August 3, 1925 in Hermanville-sur-me. Research director at the École des hautes études en sciences sociales in Paris, of which he was professor emeritus, Touraine was among the greatest and most influential contemporary sociologists. Author of over forty publications, he has received numerous prizes and awards, including the Légion d’honneur in 2014. From the first fieldwork in the Renault factories to the latest texts on the metamorphoses of “speculative” capitalism, Touraine has never ceased to observe the social world, its profound changes, its new fault lines, its resources of indignation and freedom. In Italy, his most important books have been published by Il Saggiatore: «Criticism of modernity» (1997), «How to get rid of liberalism» (2000), «Freedom, equality, diversity» (2002), «The search for oneself» (2003), «Globalization and the end of the social» (2008), «We, human subjects. Rights and new movements in the postsocial era ′′ (2017), ′′ The world belongs to women ′′ (2021).

Among his other books: «Worker’s consciousness» (Franco Angeli Editore, 1975), «Employee companies» (Liguori, 1980), «The evolution of workers’ work at Renault» (Rosenberg & Sellier, 1983), «The democracy as politics of the subject» (Il Mondo, 1997), «Equality and diversity. The new tasks of democracy» (Laterza, 1997), «After the crisis. A new possible society» (Armando Editore, 2012), «In defense of modernity» (Raffaello Cortina Editore, 2019).

In its training Touraine was affected above all by the lessons of Max Weber and the influence of the French historical school of the Annales (Lucien Febvre and Fernand Braudel). He taught in Latin America, the United States, Canada and at the University of Paris-Nanterre (1966-69); finally, from 1970 he was director of research at the École pratique des hautes études in Paris.