ABSTRACT
The Introduction presents and summarises the book's main arguments. It provides a state-of-the-art analysis of recent contributions to theorisation of elites and ordinary elites in terms of their political views and socialisation. It draws out the relevance of concepts such as political socialisation, ideological fragmentation, affective environments, and political and cultural repertoires. The aim is to situate sociological studies of elites and ordinary elites within the broader area of enquiry of class and social reproduction in order that the distinctive potential of sociology may be appreciated. It also explains the choice of chapter structure and briefly discusses the overarching themes of each section.
