This chapter sets out to locate Simmel’s sociological thinking more fully in its wider historical, social, cultural and philosophical context. This coverage is not aimed at being exhaustive but is focused on providing a background to our consideration of his method.

Although the 'autonomy' of the text and the possibility of multiple interpretations is much discussed, our final discussion of interpretations and applications of Simmel's methodology sidesteps the more general literature and builds directly from Simmel's own views on interpretation.

When we expect that a style or pattern of social activity adopted by a group or class of persons is time-limited and may 'vanish as quickly as it came', we call it fashion. Anything, not only apparel, can become the 'content' of the 'form' of fashion, although some objects are less amenable than others. These features of fashion are part of Simmel's account of fashion. Simmel also notes that fashion operates like 'honour' in its 'revolving within a given circle' and at the same time emphasising this circle as 'separate from others'. The rapid circulation in the objects of fashion also differentiate time. Simmel's dialectical general model — his usual vehicle for presenting and developing his sociological themes — is strongly evident in his treatment of fashion. Fashion is but one expression of a never-ending trend to social recurrence and renewal. It 'is a complex structure in which the leading antithetical tendencies of the psyche can be represented'. Although in Simmel's view it can enslave the individual socially, since it occurs at the 'periphery of being', it can also be used as a 'mask', leaving the 'soul' free. Thus fashion is also part of the endless dialectic of individual and society, the dialectic of 'life' and social forms. Absent in classless societies, in class societies fashion tends to flow from elites to the imitating middle class, but before class differences in fashions are eliminated, the elite move to a new, more fashionable mode.

In contrast, but still with the aim of exhibiting Simmel's general method, though by a different means, this chapter collects together his use of a single general polarity absolute-relative spread across several of his texts and in relation to a number of different topics. The topics include truth and knowledge, money and gender. The terms absolute and relative occur together or singly, but if singly, still with the second half of the pair implied. Also, when both are present, often one part of the pair will be dominant. We will also notice how a second general polarity, the subject and object duality, is often present in conjunction with the absolute-relative one.

This book shows that a dialectical conceptual model underpins Georg Simmel's writings. The book provides key examples of social forms – including fashion, the secret and money – as exemplifications of

Simmel repeatedly states that the language of sociology has links and commonalities with everyday language. But in contrast with common sense, sociology is oriented towards ‘cancelling’ the synthesis represented in particular a social phenomenon, such as ‘fashion’ or ‘the secret’, taking it apart, and seeking answers as to how and why it takes its general form. In sociological analysis the aim is to identify the recurring general forms that shape the varying content of social life. Once achieved, sociological insights may feed back into common sense.

Ross Abbinnett Kiyoshi Abe Raja Adal Peter Adey Niels Albertsen Lori Allen Anne Allison Ash Amin Louise Amoore Jens Andermann Ben Anderson Ien Ang Gil Anidjar Floya Anthias Antonio Arantes John Armitage Karel Arnaut Rowland Atkinson Jonathan Bach Dirk Baecker Peter Baehr Patrick Baert Jennifer Bajorek William Balee Anne Barron Andrew Barry Zohreh Bayatrizi David Beer Fernanda Beigel Peter Beilharz Vikki Bell Debra Benita Shaw David Bennett Shaun Best Gurminder Bhambra Gregory Bird Ole Bjerg Claire Blencowe Anders Blok Thomas Boland Dave Boothroyd Christian Borch Georgina Born Rosi Braidotti Benjamin Bratton Andrea Brighenti Julian Brigstocke Vanessa Brown Antony Bryant Robin Bunton Peter Burke James Burton Robert Button David Byrne Matthew Calarco Kirsten Campbell Michael Campbell Elizabeth Carnegie Michael Carolan Ellis Cashmore Antonio Casilli Stephen Casper Genaro Castro-Vazquez David Cecchetto Iain Chambers Sébastien Chauvin John Cheney-Lippold Daniel Chernilo