CHARLES W. SMITH ’60

CHARLES W. SMITH, a sociologist and author who specialized in social theory and economic sociology, died May 31, 2017. He was 78. After receiving his degree with honors and with distinction in philosophy, he received both master’s and PhD degrees from Brandeis University. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Beginning his career as an instructor at Simmons College, in 1966 he joined the faculty of Queens College, CUNY, where he began his pioneering work in contemporary economic sociology. He had a long and very productive career, with many accomplishments in research and teaching, scholarly journal editing, and academic administration. Best known internationally for his work as a social theorist and economic sociologist, most notably within the sociology of markets, he combined a wealth of insights derived from decades-long practice with astute field observation. He was also a pioneer of sociological research on auctions and valuation processes. In social theory, his interests were anchored in the traditions of pragmatism and critical realism. He was fascinated by the puzzle of how limited knowledge can underpin, and even make possible, human action. In his last book, What the Market Teaches Us: Limitations of Knowing and Tactics for Doing, he wove together ethnographies of financial trading, sports, and surgery in order to show how incomplete knowledge can support human action. Interested in problems of value, he was one of the earliest proponents of the view that the social organization of interactions shapes the price of the financial instruments being traded. He believed that the intense experience of financial markets also opened a window on the nature of human judgment, more so than any other social context. In addition to his scholarly work, he edited the Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour [sic] for many years. He had been chair of the department of sociology and dean of social sciences at Queens, as well as professor in The Graduate Center, CUNY. He was active in his synagogue and various other community organizations. Survivors include his wife, Dr. Rita Cope Smith; his children, Dr. Abigail C. Saguy ’92, and Dr. Jonathan C. Smith ’94; four grandchildren; three siblings; and a nephew, Dr. Paul D. Weintraub ’81