Abstract

The paper explores the biographical trajectory of Achille Ardigò (1921-2008), one of the main founders of sociology in Italy. Through a reconstruction of some of the main events in his life, we highlight how his choices and research projects have always been shaped by a creative interaction of religious faith, sociological interests and civil commitment. We stress how the many different experiences he has encountered as a journalist, a politician, an academic and a public intellectual have always been unified by a peculiar vision of the purpose of sociology, defined by the participation in a structural dialogue with Italian civil society.