In this book the author argues for the continuing relevance of Karl Mannheim's sociology of knowledge. Maintaining that Mannheim's original development of the sociology of knowledge can be updated using contemporary material, he develops a framework for the analysis of knowledge and belief in contemporary society. The books contains an original interpretation of Mannheim, showing how he relates the production and utilization of beliefs to competitive struggle between social groups. Mannheim's views on relativism and the intellectuals are considered at length.