Parsons revisited: from the sick role to...?

Abstract

This article revisits Parsons' insights on medicine, health and illness in the light of contemporary debates in medical sociology and beyond. A preliminary balance sheet of the Parsonian legacy is first provided, taking on board standard accounts and criticisms of Parsons' work within medical sociology to date. The remainder of the article, in contrast, involves a close re-reading of Parsons in the light of contemporary sociological debates on the body, emotion, trust, uncertainty and health, including late modern and postmodern interpretations of his work. Parsons, it is concluded, despite his (many) critics and detractors, has much to contribute here, not simply in terms of past insights, but also with regard to the present and future.