The idea of finding a third way in politics has been widely discussed - not only in the UK, but in the US, Continental Europe and Latin America. But what is the third way? Supporters of the notion haven't been able to agree, and critics deny the possibility altogether. Anthony Giddens shows that developing a third way is not only a possibility but a necessity in modern politics. The third way represents the renewal of social democracy in a world where the views of the old left have become obsolete, while those of the new right are inadequate and contradictory. A new social democratic agenda is emerging that is integrated, robust and wide-ranging. It is an agenda that can rekindle political idealism.The author's previous works, especiallyBeyond Left and Right (Polity Press 1994), have influenced debates about the social democracy in many countries across the world. Frequently referred to in the UK as Tony Blair's guru, Giddens has made a strong impact on the evolution of New Labour. The author or editor of over thirty books, he is currently the Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science.<br/><br/>The idea of finding a "third way" in politics has been widely discussed - not only in the UK, but in the US, Continental Europe and Latin America. But what is the third way? Supporters of the notion haven't been able to agree, and critics deny the possibility altogether. Anthony Giddens shows that developing a third way is not only a possibility but a necessity in modern politics. The third way represents the renewal of social democracy in a world where the views of the old left have become obsolete, while those of the new right are inadequate and contradictory. A new social democratic agenda is emerging that is integrated, robust and wide-ranging. It is an agenda that can rekindle political idealism.The author's previous works, especially"Beyond Left and Right" (Polity Press 1994), have influenced debates about the social democracy in many countries across the world. Frequently referred to in the UK as Tony Blair's guru, Giddens has made a strong impact on the evolution of New Labour. The author or editor of over thirty books, he is currently the Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science.

作者簡介

安東尼・吉登斯（Anthony Giddens） 1938年齣生於英國，

是當代西方著名的社會學理論巨匠。曾長期在劍橋大學國王學

院（KING’SCOILEGE）任社會學教授，現任倫敦經濟――政治

學院（LSE）院長、70年代初以來，他撰寫或主編瞭《社會的構

成》、《現代性的後果》、《民族―國傢與暴力》等三十多部著作，這

些著作對當代社會學以及政治學、曆史學、人類學等都産生瞭廣

泛而深刻的影響，並引發瞭許多富有建設意義的激烈爭論。吉

登斯新近的一些著作，特彆是《超越左與右》（PolityPress，

1994），對全世界許多國傢關於社會民主之未來的討論産生瞭極

大的影響。