Luhmann's general sociology

The article deals with Niklas Luhmann's treatise Die Gesellschaft der Gesel lschaft, exposing it to a critique in terms of Luhmann's own criterion: pla usibility. It is argued that both Parsons' general sociology and Marxism re nder more plausible accounts of modern society than does Luhmann's theory o f autopoietic systems. It is asserted that the fundamental mistake in Luhma nn's theory is his conflation of the concepts of differentiated social syst ems and autonomous social systems, a conflation that confers a ring of the imaginary to Luhmann's treatise. (C) Scandinavian Sociological Association 2000.