WRIGHT MILLS AND THE SOCIOLOGY OF KNOWLEDGE: PRAGMATISM AND SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM

The North American sociologist C. Wright Mills (1916-1962) is generally known for his studies on social stratification, elites, middle classes, labor leaders and the power structure of the United States. His theoretical production of sociological character, and with strong affinities with the philosophical reflection, was little debated here in Brazil. However, the beginning of his academic trajectory is precisely characterized by an epistemological labor on the field of sociology of knowledge, the doctoral thesis defended in 1942 with the title A sociological account of pragmatism: an essay on the sociology of knowledge. The aim of this article will be to debate this seminal work, presenting the affinities between the Mills' sociological perspective, the North American pragmatism and the symbolic interectionism of Chicago School.