Sociology and anthropology Books

Book SynopsisThis bold and accessible study of human languages and communication explores issues which are at the forefront of today's globalized society. The human species is divided into more than five thousand language groups that do not understand each other.Trade Review"Abram de Swaan is the world's leading political sociologist of language. He has a profound knowledge of the complex history interlinking states and languages and an equally acute understanding of individual incentives to learn languages. Here he applies his insights and methods – with surprising results -- to globalization and its implications for the survival of world languages. Words of the World is both a pleasure to read and a remarkable contribution to political sociology." Professor David Laitin, Stanford University "...de Swaan's view is original and rich to the extent that it sheds new light on this problem...De Swaan's analysis is definitely new and fruitful for an understanding of the relations of power and language" Anais Bokobza, European University Institute, Florence, Italy "De Swaan's study is an impressive tour de force; it presents an original and refreshing social science perspective, is rich in empirical detail, rigorous in its theoretical elaboration, and written in an elegant and accessible style: a path-breaking study of language change and human communication in an age of globalisation." Johan Heilbron, Multilingual Matters "...this book is an important contribution to our understanding of the relationship among languages of the world in the era of globalisation. It is a good addition to the growing body of texts used in increasingly popular courses on 'World English(es)'. Alamin Mazuri, The Ohio State University, USATable of ContentsPreface ix 1 Introduction: the global language system 1 1.1 The global language system: a galaxy of languages 4 1.2 A historical atlas of the world as a language system 6 1.3 Supercentral constellations in the present language system 11 1.4 Scope and approach of this book 17 1.5 Plan of the book 20 2 The political economy of language constellations 25 2.1 Languages as ‘hypercollective goods’ 27 2.2 The communication potential of a language: the Q-value 33 3 Language, culture and the unequal exchange of texts 41 3.1 Texts as commodities in international exchange 42 3.2 Protectionism and free trade in cultural exchange 47 3.3 Monoglossia, polyglossia and heteroglossia 53 3.4 Discussion 57 4 India: the rivalry between Hindi and English 60 4.1 Characterization of the Indian constellation 61 4.2 State formation, nation-building and language unification 63 4.3 The vicissitudes of language policy in India 69 4.4 Discussion 73 5 The triumph of bahasa Indonesia 81 5.1 Gandhi’s dream 81 5.2 The rise of Malay 83 5.3 The demise of Dutch 86 5.4 The rejection of Javanese 90 5.5 Discussion 93 6 Africa: the persistence of the colonial languages 96 6.1 A two-by-three comparison 99 6.2 Three francophone constellations south of the Sahara 102 6.3 Three English-centred constellations south of the Sahara 116 7 South Africa: the survival of the old language regime 127 7.1 The language regime under Apartheid 128 7.2 Language policy after Apartheid 132 7.3 The dynamics of the constellation 136 7.4 Discussion 140 8 The European Union: the more languages, the more English 144 8.1 Civil Europe (1): language unification in national constellations 146 8.2 Civil Europe (2): Q-values in the European Union 151 8.3 Institutional Europe (1): the public level 166 8.4 Institutional Europe (2): the bureaucracy 171 8.5 Discussion 173 9 Conclusions and considerations 176 9.1 Conclusions 177 9.2 Considerations 187 Notes 194 References 225 Index 244

Read more less

Book SynopsisSpace, the City and Social Theory offers a clear and critical account of key approaches to cities and urban space within social theory and analysis.Trade Review“A wonderfully eclectic but focused book about social relations and spatial process in the US city.” British Journal of Sociology “Fran Tonkiss has written an important book. She shows the ways in which classic social theory continues to haunt the understanding of modern urban life. In clear, direct prose she shows also the ways cities are changing, and so require new thinking. The urbanite as well as the urbanist will be provoked.” Richard Sennett, London School of Economics “This is an exceptionally useful and inspiring book that will be used to instruct many of the urbanists of the future.” Nigel Thrift, University of OxfordTable of ContentsAcknowledgements. Introduction. 1. Community and Solitude: Social Relations in the City. 2. Spaces of Difference and Division. 3. The Politics of Space: Social Movements and Public Space. 4. Capital and Culture: Gentrifying the City. 5. Embodied Spaces: Gender, Sexuality and the City. 6. Spatial Stories: Subjectivity in the City. 7. Making Space: Urban Cultures, Spatial Tactics. Conclusion. Bibliography. Index.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe struggle for recognition features prominently in the work of various thinkers. Lois McNay argues that the insights of the recognition theorists are undercut by their reliance on an inadequate account of power. By focussing on issues of gender she develops an alternative account of individual agency that connects identity to structure.Trade Review"Against Recognition is an important critique of some of the recognition theorists, and McNay analyses some important blind spots in the recognition literature. It is certainly a recommendable book." Political Studies Review "Incisive, committed and engaged: this is feminist social theory at it should be practised. McNay?s critique of theories of recognition develops her earlier work on agency and incorporates a powerful and compelling new analysis of the relationship between embodied identity and gender inequalities." Henrietta L. Moore, London School of Economics and Political Science "Against Recognition presents a carefully argued critique of recent efforts to represent social and political agency as a struggle for recognition. Though sympathetic to the aims of recognition theorists, McNay finds that their paradigm rests on a reductive conception of power. By way of alternative, she presents a modified version of Pierre Bourdieu's relational phenomenology, whose key concepts of habitus, field, and capital are used to provide a better account of the role that power plays in the complex interplay between agency and social situation." Andrew Cutrofello, Loyola University, ChicagoTable of ContentsAcknowledgements. Introduction: Against Recognition. Chapter One: Recognition and Misrecognition in the Psyche. Chapter Two: The Politics of Recognition. Chapter Three: Narrative and Recognition. Chapter Four: Recognition and Redistribution. Chapter Five: Beyond Recognition: Identity and Agency. Bibliography

Read more less

Book SynopsisSociety is under siege -- under attack on two fronts: from the global frontier--land where old structures and rules do not hold and new ones are slow to take shape, and from the fluid, undefined domain of life politics.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements. Introduction. PART ONE: GLOBAL POLITICS. Chapter 1. Chasing the Elusive Society. Chapter 2. The Great Separation Mark Two. Chapter 3. Living and Dying in the Planetary Frontier-Land. PART TWO: LIFE POLITICS. Chapter 4. (Un)Happiness of Uncertain Pleasures. Chapter 5. As seen on TV. Chapter 6. Consuming Life. Chapter 7.From Bystander to Actor. CONCLUSION: From Utopia with no Topos. Notes. Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn the past twenty years, social injustice has increased enormously in Britain and the United States, regardless of the party in power.Trade Review“A brilliant polemic against inequality.” Roy Hattersley, The Guardian “Barry's pugnacious defence of a robust social democracy deserves to find a wide readership ... for disillusioned social democrats, Why Social Justice Matters stands as a refreshingly staunch and intelligent manifesto.” New Statesman “Barry's writing is extremely engaging. His arguments are supported by a wide range of examples and illustrations and an impressive breadth of scholarship.” Ethics and Social Welfare “This book is a powerful argument against the utter inequity of the current political and economic system in the UK and against the way in which a discourse of ‘equal opportunities’ is used to maintain what Barry describes as the ‘machinery of injustice’. In this extraordinarily simple and lucid book, Barry weaves striking threads of supporting evidence, anecdotes, quotations and statistics together to encourage us to insist that another (just) world is not only possible but that an unjust world cannot endure.” British Journal of Sociology “Barry persuasively argues that differentials in positional goods allow the rich to have better personal health due to higher self-esteem, better access to more fulfilling jobs due to a wealth of social connections, and greater ability to capture the government and use it to secure their own interests.” UtilitasTable of ContentsPreface vii Part I Social Justice: The Basics 1 Why We Need a Theory 3 2 The Machinery of Social Injustice 14 3 The Scope of Social Justice 27 Part II Equality of Opportunity 4 Why Equal Opportunity? 37 5 Education 46 6 Health 70 7 The Making of the Black Gulag 95 Part IV The Cult of Personal Responsibility 10 Responsibility versus Equality? 131 11 Rights and Responsibilities 142 12 Irresponsible Societies 154 Part V The Demands of Social Justice 13 Pathologies of Inequality 169 14 Wealth 186 15 Jobs and Incomes 200 16 Can We Afford Social Justice? 215 Part VI The Future of Social Justice 17 The Power of Ideas 233 18 How Change Happens 243 19 Meltdown? 251 20 Justice or Bust 261 Notes 274 Index 311

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe passage from 'solid' to 'liquid' modernity has created a new and unprecedented setting for individual life pursuits, confronting individuals with a series of challenges never before encountered.Trade Review"Liquid Times and Living on Borrowed Times offer deep insights into post-modern life. Specifically, it exposes the essential social and philosophical changes that lie at the heart of the conditions that led to the global financial crisis ... the ideas in these books are fascinating."Satyajit Das, Willmot.comTable of ContentsIntroduction: Bravely into the Hotbed of Uncertainties 1 1 Liquid Modern Life and its Fears 5 2 Humanity on the Move 27 3 State, Democracy and the Management of Fears 55 4 Out of Touch Together 71 5 Utopia in the Age of Uncertainty 94 Notes 111

Read more less

Book SynopsisStudent-friendly introduction to the sociology of everyday life. Introduces in very accessible style the various theories used to interpret our everyday actions that on the surface of things might look mundane. Considers topics such as eating and drinking, leisure, time and schedules, emotions, home, as well as how to study everyday life.Trade Review"This book is a wonderful introduction to sociology. It makes the reader rethink and re-evaluate the meaning and importance of everyday events such as gardening, shopping and eating out. It makes the familiar strange but not unrecognizable." Phil Manning, Cleveland State University "At last we have a study that brings together much of what we have learnt about everyday life from social thinkers over the past fifty years or so. Inspired by Goffman?s classic work, Susie Scott brings coherence to previously disparate fields. This book is much needed and long overdue. It provides an invaluable introduction, a unique and comprehensible synthesis. This is an indispensable gift to students of social psychology and social interaction." Ken Plummer, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, University of Essex "A lucid and richly illustrated account of how the so-called little things loom large. Integrating theory and empirical work, this book will be invaluable to teachers and students of everyday life." Tia DeNora, University of ExeterTable of ContentsDetailed Contents vi Acknowledgements xi Illustration Acknowledgements xii 1 What is Everyday Life? 1 2 Theorizing the Mundane 10 3 Emotions 33 4 Home 49 5 Time 69 6 Eating and Drinking 92 7 Health, Illness and Disability 116 8 Shopping 139 9 Leisure 161 10 Researching Everyday Life 184 References 209 Index 233

Read more less

Book Synopsis* Up-to-date introduction to the study of subcultures, with a particular emphasis on theoretical approaches. * Synthesizes a huge body of literature and shows how the field has developed over the years.Trade Review"By far the most thorough and thoughtfully researched introduction to the field to date ... Highly recommended." Choice "Lays important tracks in the field of youth cultural studies and contributes powerful new data to the Chicago School’s legacy of urban ethnography and deviance studies, returning symbolic interactionism to its roots without looking backward." Symbolic Interaction "In this book, Patrick Williams offers the fields of sociology, criminology, and youth cultural studies the most encyclopedic and visionary treatment of subcultural theory and youth sensibilities to date. Williams's fusion of classic theory, modern research, and contemporary popular culture trends is masterful and Subcultural Theory is an invaluable resource to professors and researchers working in the areas of youth subcultures, deviance, and social theory." Tammy Anderson, University of Delaware "Subcultural Theory is essential reading for anyone interested in subculture studies. Patrick Williams explores the central concepts of the field - style, homology, moral panics, identity, authenticity, and more - with depth, precision, and clarity. He carefully outlines the key contributions and controversies related to major schools of thought, from the Chicago School to post-subculture studies. The thoughtful discussions of hegemony and resistance will push the study of subcultures forward. This book will be one of the most important texts in this field for years to come." Ross Haenfler, The University of Mississippi "Thorough, accessible and engaging throughout, Subcultural Theory offers an invaluable guide for those new to the subject at the same time as providing a distinctive and thought-provoking critical contribution which will be of great interest to established scholars." Paul Hodkinson, University of SurreyTable of ContentsDetailed Table of Contents. List of Figures and Images. Preface. Chapter 1: Subcultural theory. Chapter 2: Theoretical and methodological traditions. Chapter 3: Race and gender in subcultural experience. Chapter 4: Style. Chapter 5: Resistance: Subculture from the inside. Chapter 6: Labels and moral panics: subcultures from the outside. Chapter 7: Identity and Authenticity. Chapter 8: Scales. Chapter 9: Related fields. Chapter 10: A final note on concepts. Bibliography.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe second edition of The Ethnicity Reader offers a comprehensive and engaging selection of readings for students of sociology, politics, international relations and race relations. Updated with a large proportion of new readings and extended editorial summaries, the reader analyses the ethnic component present in nationalism, multiculturalism and migration, making it indispensable to those seeking to understand the relevance of ethnicity as one of the most prominent forces in the modern world. Drawing on a wide range of examples, the selections included examine theories of nationalism and consider issues of ethnic integration and conflict in the USA, Middle East, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Quebec and Catalonia among other countries and regions. The concept of ethnicity, however, is discussed not only in relation to group rights in existing nation-states: many of the selections deal with the role of ethnicity in groups which are not nationalist at all but for which ethnicitTrade Review"The new edition of Montserrat Guibernau and John Rex's Ethnicity Reader makes it the most useful volume of its kind available at present: its range is marvellous, its texts the most important and the most recent in the field."John A. Hall, McGill University "Guibernau and Rex have put together a superb collection of writings on ethnicity. They have selected from the best historical and contemporary scholarship on this fraught issue, covering a wide range of topics, from citizenship to violence. Most importantly, the variety of contributions spans the globe. The Ethnicity Reader is an excellent resource for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in a wide range of disciplines."Eric D. Weitz, University of Minnesota "The wide-ranging coverage of contemporary issues of 'ethnic' conflict and integration is what distinguishes this reader. It is a welcome addition to our course reading lists."Yasemin Soysal, University of EssexTable of ContentsAcknowledgements. Introduction. Part 1 Ethnicity and Nationalism. 1 The Concept of Ethnicity. What is an ethnic group? (Max Weber). Structure and persistence of Ethnie (Anthony D. Smith). Ethnicity without groups (Rogers Brubaker). Ethnicity, race and nation (Thomas Hylland Eriksen). 2 Ethnicity and Nationalism. The nation and the origins of national consciousness (Benedict Anderson). Nationalism as a product of industrial society (Ernest Gellner). An anti-nationalist account of nationalism since 1989 (Eric Hobsbawm). 3 Ethnicity and Violence. Causes and implications of ethnic conflict (Michael E. Brown). State collapse and the rise of identity politics in Iraq (Toby Dodge). Ethnicity and the emergence of Somaliland (Mark Bradbury). 4 Ethnicity and Self-determination. Catalonia: Nationalism and intellectuals in nations without states (Montserrat Guibernau). Scotland: The importance of raising your own revenues (Russell Mellett). Quebec and Canada: Understanding the federal principle (Alain-G Gagnon and Raffaele Iacovino). Galicia: economic backwarness and nationalist revival (Ramón Máiz). First Nations in the USA (Franke Wilmer). The Kurds in Iraq and Iran (M.R. Izady). Part II Multiculturalism, Migration and Racism. 5 Multicultural and Plural Societies. The concept of a multicultural society (John Rex). Plural societies (Leo Kuper). What is multiculturalism? (Bhikhu Parekh). Multiculturalism, liberal citizenship and national identity: on British Muslims (Tariq Modood). 6 Citizenship, Assimilation and Multiculturalism. Ethnicity and liberalism in the USA (Will Kymlicka). The 'hispanic' challenge to American identity (Samuel Huntington). Rethinking assimilation theory (Richard Alba and Victor Nee). Multiculturalism in welfare states: the case of Germany (Frank-Olaf Radtke). 'Culturalism' and 'Nationalism' in modern China (Ma Rong). 7 Migration in the Global Age. Causes of migration (Douglas S. Massey et Al.). Diasporas (James Clifford). Transnational Migrant Brokerage in China (Li Minghuan). 8 Racism and Xenophobia. Racism in Europe: unity and diversity (Michel Wieviorka). The liberal retreat from race since the Civil Rights Act (Stephen Steinberg). 'Class racism' (Étienne Balibar). Index.

Read more less

Book SynopsisWhy do powerful states like the U.S., U.K., China, and Russia repeatedly fail to meet their international legal obligations as defined by human rights instruments? How does global capitalism affect states' ability to implement human rights, particularly in the context of global recession, state austerity, perpetual war, and environmental crisis? How are political and civil rights undermined as part of moves to impose security and surveillance regimes? This book presents a framework for understanding human rights as a terrain of struggle over power between states, private interests, and organized, bottom-up social movements. The authors develop a critical sociology of human rights focusing on the concept of the human rights enterprise: the process through which rights are defined and realized. While states are designated arbiters of human rights according to human rights instruments, they do not exist in a vacuum. Political sociology helps us to understand how global Trade ReviewArmaline, Glasberg, and Purkayastha use riveting and insightful examples to illustrate the character of the human rights enterprise as contested terrain. Despite its flaws, the human rights paradigm continues to empower and inspire those whose lives are most compromised by the dehumanizing forces of global capitalism.Bruce K. Friesen, University of Tampa This penetrating and provocative analysis brings the lens of critical sociology to bear on today's international human rights regime. It explores corporate and state abuses of power that constrain the protection and fulfilment of human rights, particularly within the United States. These abuses of power are being increasingly challenged by grass-roots movements aimed at ending gross human rights violations. The authors push the boundaries of political science, sociology, and human rights scholarship, and provide a rich and timely examination of contemporary attacks on human rights that will be helpful to both scholars and on-the-ground human rights advocates.Ken Neubeck, University of ConnecticutTable of ContentsAcknowledgements 1. The Human Rights Enterprise and a Critical Sociology of Human Rights 2. Power and the State: Global Economic Restructuring and the Global Recession 3. The Human Rights Enterprise: A Genealogy of Continuing Struggles 4. Private Tyrannies: Rethinking the Rights of “Corporate Citizens” 5. Current Contexts and Implications for Human Rights Praxis References

Read more less

Book SynopsisSuccess often depends on the strength of a single quality: leadership. Winston Churchill is universally recognized as one of the 20th century's great political leaders and his words ring just as true in the world of commerce. A wise, witty, and inspiring leader, Churchill ran Great Britain like a great corporation. Perhaps the finest book on practical leadership ever written. — Brian Tracy Churchill on Leadership demonstrates that the principles that guided Churchill ably translate to private industry today. Author Steven F. Hayward gives strong evidence that, if you remove Churchill from his political context, he would have the resume to be among the great business leaders of any age. Churchill: • was a financier (as chancellor of the Exechequer) and labor negotiator (as home secretary) • managed a large transportation network (as head of the British Navy) and far-flung property holdings (as colonial secretary) • perseve

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis edition of Response to Disaster provides an updated and more thorough version of the well-received 1994 first edition. The author adds new research and expands on areas only briefly developed in the first edition, which disseminated the original research findings from several disaster research studies completed by the author. He provides the reader with a basic understanding of how people and organizations usually respond to a disaster in contrast to how they are usually perceived to respond, as well as a description of how and why the mass media helps provide both accurate and inaccurate information involving disasters. In addition, the author discusses organizational response to disasters and assesses future needs in research to improve the reaction to them so that mitigation, planning, and disaster response activity are more effective. Here, he greatly expands the areas of theory of approaches to disaster.Trade Review. . . the collection of papers contained in the book may provide a useful introduction to disaster research to newcomers, in need of a synthetic overview of the main issues dealt with. -- Bruna De Marchi * Journal Of Contingencies and Crisis Management *. . . the collection of papers contained in the book may provide a useful introduction to disaster research to newcomers, in need of a synthetic overview of the main issues dealt with. -- Bruna De Marchi * Journal Of Contingencies and Crisis Management *Table of ContentsChapter 1 Foreword Chapter 2 Preface Chapter 3 Acknowledgments Chapter 4 What is a Disaster? Chapter 5 Behavioral Response to Disaster Chapter 6 Why We Believe the Disaster Mythology Chapter 7 Organizational Response to Disaster Chapter 8 Future Research Needs Chapter 9 Bibliography Chapter 10 Index Chapter 11 About the Author

Read more less

Book SynopsisTable of ContentsChapter 1: What is a Disaster? Chapter 2.: Who Does Disaster Research? Chapter 3: Behavioral Response to Disaster Chapter 4: Why We Believe the Disaster Mythology Chapter 5: Organizational Response to Disaster Chapter 6: Future Research Needs

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book examines eternal colonialism, a term used to describe the policies that were designed by the Western world and the United States in order to keep most of the world in a permanently subordinate political, economic, social, and military state. Eternal colonialism is a combination of both internal and external colonialism, or neocolonialism. Benjamin and Hall argue that the colonialism beginning in the fifteenth century never ended, but rather developed different forms over time. The scope of their work examines eternal colonialism in both American and international contexts. The authors contend that the United States practices internal colonialism within its borders, in addition to being fully engaged in external colonialism. Eternal Colonialism will prove essential to those who want to understand the ongoing global tension and turmoil, especially with regard to North-South relations. Furthermore, readers will see how the United States, arguably the greatest of the colonizers, Table of ContentsChapter 1 Acknowledgments Chapter 2 Introduction Part 3 Part I. The Domestic Dimension of Eternal Colonialism: Internal Colonialism in the United States Chapter 4 1: The American Internal Colonial Environment Chapter 5 2: Going Beyond the Accepted: Black Politics and Enduring Colonialism Chapter 6 3: The Legacy of U.S. Internal Colonialism and the Struggle for Democracy Chapter 7 4: Battling Neocolonialism: A Guevarian Model of Social Action Part 8 Part II. The Global Dimension of Eternal Colonialism: External Colonialism Chapter 9 5: The New North-South Dealignment in International Relations and the Impact on Regional and Global Affairs Chapter 10 6: Globalization's Gendered Consequences for the Caribbean Chapter 11 7: Africa in Fragments: Justice, Politics, and Transformation Chapter 12 8: Democracy by Coup: A Colonial Legacy? Western Hegemony, Indigenous Sovereignty, and Governance in Mutliethnic Fiji Chapter 13 9. Conclusion Chapter 14 Index Chapter 15 About the Contributors

Read more less

Book SynopsisA collection of essays, this volume is subdivided into sections posing research, policy, and strategic questions regarding social change. It introduces conceptual innovations regarding the spatial boundaries of development, sovereignty and the politics of globalization, food regime analysis, recompositions of rural activity, and more.Table of ContentsNew Research Agendas in the Era of Global Development. New Directions in Commodity Chain Analysis of Global Development Processes. (J.L. Collins). Trans-Local and Trans-Regional Socio-Economic Structures in Global Development: A 'Horizontal' Perspective. (S. Halperin). Changing Rural Scenarios and Research Agendas in Latin America in the New Century. (N. Long, B. Roberts). Conquering, Comprador, or Competitive: the National Bourgeoisie in the Developing World. (A. Schrank). Global Development and Policy Questions. What is Food and Farming For? - The (Re)emergence of Health as a Key Policy Driver. (T. Lang). Promoting Sustainable Development: the Question of Governance. (G. Lawrence). 'Stateless' Regulation and Consumer Pressure: Historical Experiences of Transnational Corporate Monitoring. (G. Seidman). Strategic Questions and Global Developments. The Poverty of Resource Extraction. (S.G. Bunker). From Colonialism to Green Capitalism: Social Movements and the Emergence of Food Regimes. (H. Friedmann). Global Development and the Corporate Food Regime. (P. McMichael). Shifting Strategies of Sovereignty: Brazil and the Politics of Globalization. (S. Schoonmaker).

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe Portion Teller Plan is a sensible eating guide and the end of diet deprivation. No forbidden foods, no calorie counting. Welcome to diet liberation. Would you ever consider going to the kitchen in the morning and grabbing five slices of bread for breakfast? No? Just one bagel is more like it, right? Well, your morning bagel is equivalent to eating five slices of bread. Your steak at dinner is equal to the protein in eighteen eggs. And that huge bowl of pasta you had at lunch is anybody’s guess. Nobody likes to cut back but the cold hard facts are in: Portion sizes have steadily increased over the past thirty years and our collective waistlines are ballooning right along with them. You may need to eat a little less if you want to lose weight, but with The Portion Teller Plan you can eat all of your favorite foods. Nutrition and portion size expert Dr. Lisa Young presents an individualized guide to eating according to your port

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisA history of peyotism, an important Native American religious movement. Presenting ethnographic and ethnohistorical data, rather than a theoretical exegesis, the study of this pan-tribal movement should appeal to anthropologists and historians, as well as those interested in religious groups.

Read more less

Book SynopsisAn examination of a movement of evangelical Christian men who promoted adherence to a code of conduct that masculinized conservative, religious and social values, this title details the social forces that contributed to the group's wild popularity, declining fortunes and efforts to reinvent itself.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments 1. The Rise and Fall of the Christian Men's Movement 2. Situating the Promise Keepers: History, Culture, and Religious Identity 3. Godly Masculinities: Archetypes of Christian Manhood 4. Reforming American Culture: Sport, Gender, and Religion at Stadium Conferences 5. The ABCs of Promise-Keeping: Accountability, Brotherhood, and Confessional Culture 6. Multicultural Evangelicalism: Racial Reconciliation and Cultural Diversity 7. Conclusion: Promise Keepers' Fate in a New Millennium Appendix: Research Methodology Notes References Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis text explores the profound changes that have affected social relations in Morocco over the last 150 years, particularly those between the sexes and between linguistic identities and cultures. It provides a portrait of Morocco under colonial and post-colonial leadership.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis introduction to model building in the social sciences looks at, among other things, the nature of models and how they are constructed.

Read more less

Book Synopsis"Mapping the Present" assesses the relationship between Foucault and Heidegger, particularly on the issue of space and history. It suggests that space and history need to be rethought, and combined as a spatial history, rather than as a history of space.Trade Review"Offers a powerful reinterpretation of Foucault and reveals the frequently neglected significance of the work of Heidegger to Foucault's intellectual project. Mapping the Present provides analytically rigorous yet accessible reinterpretations of relevant works of both Foucault and Heidegger and demonstrates the crucial importance of spatial relations in the exercise of modern forms of power."--Barry Smart"A marvellous book--critical and generous, clear and sophisticated, wise and witty. For those interested in the project of a spatial history, Elden has opened up wholly new ways of thinking about (and working with) Heidegger and Foucault that are alert to the philosophical and theoretical complexities of their writings and to the political and ethical responsibilities of a history of the present."--Derek Gregory"...excellent study...It is a rich and complex book, which is at once an interpretation of Heidegger and Foucault, an argument for the importance of Heidegger for understanding Foucault and a forceful case for the claim that Foucault's Nietzsche is a Nietzsche mediated by Heidegger...it is an amazing book in the sense that it can handle such a variety of topics, and thinkers and issues and so many layers of argument in a concise, readable and yet immaculate manner. Stuart Elden is a master of brevity. The main body of the book is supplemented by nearly fifty pages of notes and an excellent bibliography that will be of great help to those who want to pursue the issues of their interest further, leaving the book accessible to the 'general' reader." -- The Journal of Natural and Social Philosophy, 2005 -- The Journal of Natural and Social PhilosophyTable of ContentsSpace and history in being and time; in the shadow of Nazism - reading Holderlin and Nietzsche; art, technology, place and the political; towards a spatial history; the spaces of power.

Read more less

Book SynopsisArgues that the greater danger in our culture is the tendency to fear achievements representing a more constructive side of humanity. This work relates the author's thinking on the sociology of fear to the thought of earlier thinkers such as Darwin and Fred and to the sociological tradition of Durkheim, C Wright Mills, Anthony Giddens and others.Trade ReviewMentioned in Psychologies (main) in article by Hannah Borno, 1 March 2009Table of ContentsPreface; Introduction; 1. The explosion of risks; 2. Why do we panic?; 3. the culture of abuse; 4. A world of risky strangers; 5. Who can you trust?; 6. The new etiquette; 7. The Politics of Fear; 8. Towards a sociology of fear; Bibliography; Index.

Read more less

a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

Read more less

a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

Read more less

a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe fall of communism, the emergence of ''the information age,'' and the expansion of economic globalism are the points of departure for this new edition of Chase-Dunn''s landmark book. The author shows how these seemingly new developments fit with earlier patterns of global formation and change, extending the influential model that drew wide attention to this award-winning book. The new edition also evaluates recent major studies of the modern world-system and assesses the implications for the future of the contemporary system.Trade ReviewIn this impressive book, Chase-Dunn . . . explains in masterly fashion the political and social factors that make the capitalist system so good at producing wealth. -- Susan Strange * Times Higher Education *[T]he major statement to date of American world-systems theory and research. -- Walter L. Goldfrank, University of California, Santa CruzThe second edition of Global Formation brings us doubly up to date on Chase-Dunn's contributions to the joint effort. * International Sociology Review *An updated edition extends a world-systems structural modelof the world economy to take into account events that have occurred since 1985, including the emergence of the information age, the expansion of economic globalism, & the fall of communism..... * Sociological Abstracts, April 2000 *An updated edition extends a world-systems structural modelof the world economy to take into account events that have occurred since 1985, including the emergence of the information age, the expansion of economic globalism, & the fall of communism. * Sociological Abstracts, April 2000 *Table of ContentsPart 1 Part I: The Whole System Chapter 2 The Deep Structure: Real Capitalism Chapter 3 Constants, Cycles and Trends Chapter 4 Stages of Capitalism or World-System Cycles? The World-System Since 1945: What Has Changed Chapter 5 World Culture, Normative Integration and Community Part 6 Part II: States and Interstate System Chapter 7 States and Capitalism Chapter 8 Geopolitics and Capitalism: One Logic or Two? Warfare and World-Systems Chapter 9 Rise and Decline of Hegemonic Core States Part 10 Part III: Zones of the World System Chapter 11 Core and Periphery Chapter 12 Reproduction of the Core/Periphery Relationship

Read more less

a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

Read more less

a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis collection brings together Daniel Bell''s best work in essay form. It deals with a variety of topics: technology and culture, religion and personal identity, intellectuals and their societies, and the uses and abuses of doctrines of social class. The Winding Passage demonstrates the author''s continuing concern with the salient issues of our times, while its inspiration draws upon an older, humanistic sociological tradition.In a central essay on intellectuals, Bell examines the term new class and calls it a muddle. Though the idea of class has been relevant to Western industrial society for the past two hundred years, the concept is less useful for examining Communist states, the Third World, and even the emerging postindustrial sectors of the West. Bell seeks to establish the idea of situs, the competitive conflict of functional groups for shares in the state budgetary process.A more personal note is struck in the final section of the bTable of ContentsForeword, Preface, Part I - Techne and Themis, Part II - Prophets of Utopia, Part III - The Intellectuals and The New Class, Part IV - Directions of Social Change, Part V - Culture and Beliefs, Acknowledgements, Index

Read more less

Trade Review"Warrior's Way offers an uncompromising view of life through the eyes of one who sees more clearly than most--one man's experiences that mirror the universal quest for understanding, for spirit, for peace." --Dan Millman, author, The Way of the Peaceful Warrior

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe Anthropology of Citizenship introduces the theoretical foundations of and cutting edge approaches to citizenship in the contemporary world, in local, national and global contexts. Key readings provide a cross-cultural perspective on citizenship practices, and an individual citizen's relationship with the state. Introduces a range of exciting and cutting edge approaches to citizenship in the contemporary world Provides key readings for students and researchers who wish to gain an understanding of citizenship practices, and an individual's relationship with the state in a global context Offers an anthropological perspective on citizenship, the self and political agency, with a focus on encounters between citizens and the state in education, law, development, and immigration policy Provides students with an understanding of the theoretical foundations of citizenship, as characterized by liberal and civic republican ideas of political bTrade Review"Lazar should be commended for her impressive introduction to the volume, which is in itself a valuable introduction to the anthropology of citizenship." (Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 1 February 2015) Table of ContentsIntroduction 1Sian Lazar Part I Theoretical Foundations 23 Introduction 25 I.1 Civic Republican Traditions 27 1 The Democratic Citizen 29Pericles 2 The Politics 31Aristotle 3 The Social Contract, 1762 35Jean-Jacques Rousseau 4 The Decline of the Nation-State and the End of the Rights of Man, 1951 38Hannah Arendt I.2 Liberal Traditions 41 5 Two Treatises of Government, 1689 43John Locke 6 Declaration of the Rights of Man, France, 1789 47 7 The Second Constitution of Haiti (Hayti), May 20, 1805 49 8 Citizenship and Social Class, 1950 52T. H. Marshall The Liberal–Communitarian Debate 61 9 The Ideal of Community and the Politics of Difference, 1986 63Iris Marion Young I.3 Constructing an Anthropology of Citizenship 73 10 Cultural Citizenship in San Jose, California, 1994 75Renato Rosaldo 11 Cultural Citizenship as Subject-Making: Immigrants Negotiate Racial and Cultural Boundaries in the United States, 1996 79Aihwa Ong 12 Spaces of Insurgent Citizenship, 1999 93James Holston Part II Ethnographic Explorations 99 II.1 Citizenship Regimes, Subject-Formation and the State 101 Introduction 103 13 Education for Credit: Development as Citizenship Project in Bolivia, 2004 107Sian Lazar 14 Producing Good Citizens: Languages, Bodies, Emotions, 2008 120Véronique Benei 15 Biological Citizenship: The Science and Politics of Chernobyl-Exposed Populations, 2004 139Adriana Petryna Inclusive Citizenship and Claims-Making from Below 147 16 Reframing Agrarian Citizenship: Land, Life and Power in Brazil, 2009 149Hannah Wittman 17 Life Itself: Triage and Therapeutic Citizenship, 2010 163Vinh-Kim Nguyen II.2 Citizenship beyond the Nation-State 177 Introduction 179 18 The Queen of the Chinese Colony: Contesting Nationalism, En-Gendering Diaspora, 2005 181Lok C. D. Siu 19 Transborder Citizenship: An Outcome of Legal Pluralism within Transnational Social Fields, 2005 196Nina Glick Schiller 20 Difficult Distinctions: Refugee Law, Humanitarian Practice and Political Identification in Gaza, 2007 208Ilana Feldman Urban Citizenship 227 21 The Implosion of Modern Public Life, 2000 229Teresa P. R. Caldeira 22 Contesting Citizenship in Urban China: Peasant Migrants, the State and the Logic of the Market, 1999 248Dorothy J. Solinger II.3 The Citizen and the Non-citizen 267 Introduction 269 23 The War of ‘Who is Who’: Autochthony, Nationalism and Citizenship in the Ivoirian Crisis, 2006 271Ruth Marshall-Fratani 24 Practicing German Citizenship, 2008 292Ruth Mandel 25 The Legal Production of Mexican/Migrant ‘Illegality’, 2005 309Nicholas de Genova Index 326

Read more less

Book SynopsisEpistemology, Fieldwork, and Anthropology explores the space between epistemology and methodology, offering a systematic examination of the empirical foundations of interpretations in anthropology. Trade Review"The author's theoretical erudition and practical research experience more than 40 years ensures that no choice is taken for granted, but is subjected to reasoning. The book carves out a very important niche for itself between more abstract epistemology and a field hand book." - Christian Lund, Professor of Development Studies, University of Copenhagen, Denmark "Indeed, a basic tenor in the book is a determined search for guarantees that qualitative does not become synonymous with impressionistic." - Peter Geschiere, Professor of Anthropology, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands "Anthropology has been waiting for this book for a long time. It is not only a felicitous marriage between French rationalism and American pragmatism, but also a response to the increasingly tired ideological wars that pit objectivity against subjectivity and culture against text, especially from a North American perspective." - Bob White, Professor of Anthropology, University of Montreal, CanadaTable of Contents1. Introduction: Empirical Adequacy, Theory, Anthropology 2. The Policy of Fieldwork. Data Production in Anthropology And Qualitative Approaches 3. Emic and the Actors' Point Of View 4. From Observation To Description 5. The Methodological 'I': Implication and Explicitation in Fieldwork 6. Methodological Populism and Ideological Populism in Anthropology 7. The Violence Done To Data: On A Few Figures of Over-Interpretation 8. Common Sense and Scholarly Sense. Conclusion Postface: Researcher And Citizen: Science And Ideology

Read more less

Book SynopsisJan Blommaert is Professor of Language, Culture and Globalization and Director of Babylon, Center for the Study of Superdiversity at Tilburg University, the Netherlands.Trade ReviewBlommaert's book is a theoretical tour-de-force, entertaining, challenging and immensely enlightening. It encompasses a wide swath of thinking about the relationship between language and society, both in history and now. * Internet Pragmatics *Once again, Blommaert challenges sociolinguists to reflect on our discipline in new and exciting ways. While we have long devoted much energy to the linguistic half of the sociolinguistic equation, here Blommaert makes a compelling argument for engaging more fully with the social half, and for the relevance of classical sociology to understanding the new ways language is being used in the age of globalisation and digital communication. * Rodney H. Jones, Professor of Sociolinguistics, University of Reading, UK *In this concise but absorbing book, Blommaert provides a highly persuasive argument for why sociology should engage seriously with research into language. In doing so he details the profound and wide-ranging benefits that the study of communicative interaction can offer for a theorization of society in general. The book is likely to become essential reading for both sociolinguists, sociologists, and those interested in the ways that digital media are transforming the modern world. * Philip Seargeant, Senior Lecturer in Applied Linguistics, The Open University, UK *Table of Contents1. Sociolinguists as sociologists 2. Durkheim’s social fact 2.1 Norms and concepts 2.2 Integration and anomie 2.3 Durkheim’s impact and the challenge of 'Rational Choice' 3. Sociolinguistics and the social fact: Avec Durkheim 3.1 Language as a normative collective system: ordered indexicality 3.2 Language variation: dialects, accents & languaging 3.3 Inequality, voice, repertoire 3.4 Language, the social fact 4. What Durkheim could not have known: Après Durkheim 4.1 Preliminary: A theory of vernacular globalization 4.2 An indexical-polynomic theory of social norms 4.3 A genre theory of social action 4.4 A microhegemonic theory of identity 4.5 A theory of “light” social groups 4.6 A polycentric theory of social integration 4.7 Constructures 4.8 Anachronism as power 5. The sociological re-imagination References

Read more less

Book SynopsisKamran Khan is a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Spain.Trade ReviewThis is a book that inspires reflection. It is thoughtful, accessibly written and scholarly, with rich theoretical insights emerging out of careful ethnography ... The book has much to offer a wide readership, from sociolinguistic ethnographers to those involved in policy and delivery. * Journal of Sociolinguistics *The book provides a timely contribution to understanding how language testing policy related to citizenship is taken up, resisted and discursively reconstructed by recent migrants and refugees. * Language Problems and Language Planning *A fine example of scholarship that is informed by contemporary developments in politics and policy ... It combines skilful storytelling with academic rigour. * MoneyControl.com *What makes this book unique and a must-read for scholars in the fields of migration studies, language testing and related areas is the ethnographic approach that allows to foreground a subject perspective and to trace in detail how a journey to citizenship is experienced by an applicant, how he deals with the challenges and requirements of the procedure and how subject positions and aspirations are negotiated and reevaluated during this process. * Brigitta Busch, University of Vienna, Austria *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. Trials of a citizen 2. Four forms of becoming 3. Testing for citizenship 4. Ideological becoming 5. Education as a space of becoming 6. The ceremony 7. Conclusion References Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisAled Thomas is a Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Wolverhampton, UK, Visiting Fellow at the Open University, UK and co-founder of alt-ac.uk.Trade ReviewA major work on the lives of Scientologists beyond the Church of Scientology is long overdue. Aled Thomas has produced a timely and insightful book. The work moves scholarship forward from the study of Scientology to the study of Scientologies. * Stephen E. Gregg, University of Wolverhampton, UK *Aled Thomas gives us an ethnographic look into a fascinating phenomenon on the alternative religious landscape: Scientology as interpreted and practiced among those who left the Church of Scientology or were never members in the first place. This book is highly recommended for scholars of new religions and is a welcome addition to the growing body of scholarship on Scientology and Scientologists. * Donald A. Westbrook, San Jose State University, USA *Table of ContentsPreface 1. Introduction: Researching ‘Scientologies’ Part 1: From Scientology to Scientologies 2. The Church of Scientology and the ‘Free Zone’: A Complex Relationship 3. Auditing and the ‘Tech’: The Basics 4. ‘You are YOU in a body’: Negotiating the Self in Scientology Part 2: Fluidity and Boundaries 5. Authenticity and Innovation: The ‘True Tech’ and ‘Mistakes by Hubbard’ 6. ‘Doing Scientology’: E-Meters, Objects, and Material Culture 7. Moving Forward: Reflections on Free Zone Scientology and the Wider Study of Religions 8. Conclusion Appendix A Appendix B Notes References Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisA much-praised memoir of living and surviving mental illness as well as a stereotype-shattering look at a tenacious woman whose brain is her best friend and her worst enemy (Time). Elyn R. Saks is an esteemed professor, lawyer, and psychiatrist and is the Orrin B. Evans Professor of Law, Psychology, Psychiatry, and the Behavioral Sciences at the University of Southern California Law School, yet she has suffered from schizophrenia for most of her life, and still has ongoing major episodes of the illness. The Center Cannot Hold is the eloquent, moving story of Elyn''s life, from the first time that she heard voices speaking to her as a young teenager, to attempted suicides in college, through learning to live on her own as an adult in an often terrifying world. Saks discusses frankly the paranoia, the inability to tell imaginary fears from real ones, the voices in her head telling her to kill herself (and to harm others), as well as the incredibly difficult obstacles she overcame to bec

Read more less

Book SynopsisArvind-Pal Singh Mandair is an Associate Professor and holder of the S.B.S.C. Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies at the University of Michigan, USA. His earlier books include: Religion and the Specter of the West: Sikhism, India, Postcoloniality and the Politics of Translation (2009), Teachings of the Sikh Gurus (with Christopher Shackle, 2005), Secularism and Religion-Making (2009). He is a founding editor of the journal Sikh Formations: Religion, Culture and Theory.Trade ReviewSikhism – A Guide for the Perplexed is an insightful and well-crafted introduction to the study of Sikhism as a dynamic and internally fluid tradition. Mandair offers a novel approach in this introductory text that avoids the common pitfalls of historicism and that denaturalizes the tendency to frame Sikhi as purely religious experience within the parameters of the secular-religious binary. Focusing on key issues that reflect what animates Sikh activity and the lived experiences of Sikhs today, Mandair is able to achieve what might seem incommensurable objectives: introducing novices to a field of study, while challenging those already engaged in Sikh Studies with new insights and perspectives. Intriguing and at times provocative, this text will without doubt stand out among introductory texts to Sikhism for its interdisciplinary format, its success in engaging readers intellectually, and its capacity to actively relate ideas from the history and philosophy of religion in a way in which the encounter between these disciplines and Sikhi as an emerging philosophy and way of life remains always in sight. -- Michael Nijhawan, Associate Professor of Sociology, York University, CanadaTable of ContentsAcknowledgements \ Introduction \ Part I: Evolution of the Sikh Tradition \ 1. Guru Nanak and His Early Successors \ 2. Martyrdom and Militancy: Rise of the Khalsa \ 3. Modernity and Colonialism \ Part II: Teachings and Practices \ 4. Way of Life \ 5. Sikh Philosophy \ Part III: Pluralism & its Challenges \ 6. Sikh Ethics \ 7. Sikhs and the Public Sphere \ Glossary of Punjabi Terms \ Notes \ Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn the fourth edition of Provocateur, sociologist Anthony J. Cortese offers an up-to-date, critical analysis of modern advertising. Though we often hear that we live in a period of unprecedented gender and racial equality, both racism and sexism persist in a most telling areathe ads with which we are inundated every day in newspapers and magazines and online. Cortese examines the ideologies surrounding gender and race by delving into the presentation of women, ethnic minorities, children, and anyone who is qualified as other in society. Featuring a fresh selection of nearly 400 advertisements, this edition includes new scholarship from gender, racial, and cultural studies, new chapters on gay and lesbian marketing and aggression and violence in the media, an expanded chapter on race in advertising, and more. This edition is ideal for sociology, communication, and gender and ethnic studies courses as well as for use as go-to reference.Trade ReviewA fascinating examination of an underexplored aspect of advertising and its impact on all of our lives. -- Jean KilbourneCortese’s analysis should motivate readers to pay more careful attention to the multitude of images that daily bombard us through advertising. Cortese teaches readers how to deconstruct and critically respond to the sexism, racism, and heterosexism embedded in many advertisements, making Provocateur as much a call to action as it is a textbook. -- Claire M. Renzetti, professor and chair of sociology and Judi Conway Patton Endowed Chair at the Center for Research on Violence against Women, University of KentuckyCortese continues to offer timely and important insights into how women, members of ethnic and racial minorities, and members of LGBT communities are framed and imaged in advertising. -- Jim Snow, Loyola University MarylandPraise for Previous Editions This volume is an excellent historical and up-to-date analysis of how advertising targets ethnic minorities, gays and lesbians, as well as white heterosexuals. Academic readers will find eclectic scholarship representing feminist theory, sociology of advertising, ethnic studies, dramaturgy, postmodernism, and media literacy. In addition, Cortese provides practical advice on how readers can combat their own cultural conditioning, which may be racist. An outline for evaluating advertising is also included as an appendix. These guides, along with the excellent analysis throughout, make this an outstandingly useful volume. Excellent bibliography and index. Essential. * CHOICE *The author takes a close look behind the scenes of contemporary culture, examining the hidden messages and social meaning of advertising and its use of images of women and minorities. * Business Horizons *A well-researched, thoughtful examination of an aspect of advertising that is seldom discussed and would be an excellent textbook or supplemental reading for advertising, media in society, and women and minorities in media courses. * Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly *Cortese asks some very good questions, and he has a good eye for recent trends. * Ideology and Cultural Production *Table of ContentsPreface to the Fourth Edition 1. Representations, Multiculturalism, and Mass Media 2. Visual Attraction, Body Display, and Advertising 3. Gay and Lesbian Advertising 4. Constructed Bodies, Deconstructing Gender: Sexism in Advertising 5. Aggression and Violence in Mass Media 6. Symbolic Racism in Advertising 7. Ethnic Marketing 8. Speed and Visual Fragments: Toward Postmodern Consciousness Appendix: Advertising Evaluation Glossary References Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis comprehensive anthology features classical readings on the Sociology of Education, as well as current, original essays by notable contemporary scholars. Assigned as a main text or a supplement, this fully updated Sixth Edition uses the open systems approach to provide readers with a framework for understanding and analyzing the book’s range of topics. Jeanne H. Ballantine, Joan Z. Spade, and new co-editor Jenny M. Stuber, all experienced instructors in this subject, have chosen articles that are highly readable, and that represent the field’s major theoretical perspectives, methods, and issues.The Sixth Edition includes twenty new selections and five revisions of original readings and features new perspectives on some of the most contested issues in the field today, such as school funding, gender issues in schools, parent and neighborhood influences on learning, growing inequality in schools, and charter schools.   

Read more less

Book SynopsisAt century’s close, American social scientists, policy analysts, philanthropists and politicians became obsessed with a fearsome and mysterious new group said to be ravaging the ghetto: the urban “underclass.” Soon the scarecrow category and its demonic imagery were exported to the United Kingdom and continental Europe and agitated the international study of exclusion in the postindustrial metropolis. In this punchy book, Loïc Wacquant retraces the invention and metamorphoses of this racialized folk devil, from the structural conception of Swedish economist Gunnar Myrdal to the behavioral notion of Washington think-tank experts to the neo-ecological formulation of sociologist William Julius Wilson. He uncovers the springs of the sudden irruption, accelerated circulation, and abrupt evaporation of the “underclass” from public debate, and reflects on the implications for the social epistemology of urban marginality. What accounts for the “lemming effect” that drew a generation of scholars of race and poverty over a scientific cliff? What are the conditions for the formation and bursting of “conceptual speculative bubbles”? What is the role of think tanks, journalism, and politics in imposing “turnkey problematics” upon social researchers? What are the special quandaries posed by the naming of dispossessed and dishonored populations in scientific discourse and how can we reformulate the explosive question of “race” to avoid these troubles? Answering these questions constitutes an exacting exercise in epistemic reflexivity in the tradition of Bachelard, Canguilhem and Bourdieu, and it issues in a clarion call for social scientists to defend their intellectual autonomy against the encroachments of outside powers, be they state officials, the media, think tanks, or philanthropic organizations. Compact, meticulous and forcefully argued, this study in the politics of social science knowledge will be of great interest to students and scholars in sociology, anthropology, urban studies, ethnic studies, geography, intellectual history, the philosophy of science and public policy.Trade Review“Loïc Wacquant's exploration of the rise and decline of the 'underclass' concept features extraordinary archival research. This important and unique book is destined to become a standard reference in studies ranging from the sociology of knowledge to urban poverty.”William Julius Wilson, author of The Truly Disadvantaged“In this thoroughly historicized account, Wacquant dissects the politics, panic, and obscurantism that accompanied the ‘underclass’ debate in the closing decades of the twentieth century – at the expense of the communities the concept purported to represent. It is an essential guide to a more ethical, genuinely reflexive sociology.”Alice O’Connor, author of Poverty Knowledge ''The Invention of the 'Underclass' is a must-read for specialists and students of urban poverty, social policy, and social theory.''Social Forces "there is much to enjoy and admire here. The investigation is focused, rich and detailed and the writing is robust and engaging.... the book is an excellent addition to scholarship in this area and will undoubtedly become an important reference point for future sociological work on the construction of undeserving and marginalised groups.''Critical Social Policy "Wacquant has erected a critical yield sign that social scientists should heed but are likely to ignore. . . . if we are to learn anything from Wacquant’s must-read text, it should be that the line between use and abuse of a concept is perilously thin."Sociology of Race and Ethnicity"[A]n interesting exploration of an uncomfortable episode in the history of social science."Critical CriminologyTable of ContentsList of Figures Acknowledgements Prologue PART ONE ~ THE TALE 1. Between concept and myth: genealogy of a shifty category 2. “The tragedy of the underclass”: policy theater and scholarship 3. The three faces of the “underclass” 4. The strange career of a racialized folk devil 5. Implications for the social epistemology of urban marginality PART TWO ~ LESSONS FROM THE TALE Quandaries and consequences of naming Forging robust concepts Epistemic opportunity costs Bandwagons, speculation, and turnkeys Coda: Resolving the trouble with “race” in the 21st century Appendix: The afterlives of the “underclass” Bibliography Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisWhat binds together Louis Riel's former secretary, a railroad inventor, a Montreal comedienne, an early proponent of Canada's juvenile system and a prominent Canadian architect? Socialists, suffragists, musicians, artists - from 1898 to 1948, these and some 550 other individual Canadian Bahá'ís helped create a movement described as the second most widespread religion in the world. Using diaries, memoirs, official reports, private correspondence, newspapers, archives and interviews, Will C. van den Hoonaard has created the first historical account of Bahá'ís in Canada. In addition, The Origins of the Bahá'í Community of Canada, 1898-1948 clearly depicts the dynamics and the struggles of a new religion in a new country. This is a story of modern spiritual heroes - people who changed the lives of others through their devotion to the Bahá'í ideals, in particular to the belief that the earth is one country and all of humankind are its citizens. Thirty-nine original photographs effectively depict persons and events influencing the growth of the Bahá'í movement in Canada. The Origins of the Bahá'í Community of Canada, 1898-1948 makes an original contribution to religious history in Canada and provides a major sociological reference tool, as well as a narrative history that can be used by scholars and Bahá'ís alike for many years to come.Trade Review``van den Hoonaard has produced a book that I am sure will be considered for many years to come, not only as the standard history of the Canadian Bahãi'ã community but also as a model for anyone wishing to produce a history of any Bahãi'ã community or indeed of any religious movement.'' -- Moojan Momen -- Bahãi'ã Studies Bulletin``Van den Hoonaard's dual perspective makes this book of interest to both historians and sociologists of religion. Anyone interested in the Bahãi'ã faith will find the book a very useful introduction.'' -- Henry G. MacLeod -- Canadian Book Review Annual``The research was conducted over a period of ten years. The result is an exhaustive detailing of how the Bahãi'ã faith came to be established in Canada--where it occurred and who was involved.... The strength of van den Hoonaard's account is the detailed research on members....The fact that he is able to study the contours of the religion over a relatively long time span makes the study particularly interesting and unusual. It is also the only extensive study of the Bahãi'ã community in Canada. As such, it will be of surpassing interest to all Canadian Bahãi'ã s, and a useful addition to the sparse sociological literature on specific religious groups in Canada. -- J. Graham Morgan, Dalhousie University -- Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology``While taking a narrative historical approach, van den Hoonaard also demonstrates considerable familiarity with the sociological literature on new religious movements, noting where the Bahãi'ã s follow or depart from the patterns of other groups.... [T]he book provides a wealth of information about how a new religion sank its roots deeply into Canadian soil.'' -- Robert H. Stockman, DePaul University -- Nova Religio``Will van den Hoonaard has performed a commendable service to sociologists of religion by providing one of the few sociological analyses of a national Bahãi'ã community.... Overall, van den Hoonaard accomplished his objectives. His solid scholarship reveals the struggles of the early Canadian Bahãi'ã community, and its growing identity as an independent religious movement with maturing institutional boundaries.... Van den Hoonaard provides sociologists with an important text for comprehending the extensive array of religious movements in a pluralistic cultural marketplace.... His combination of qualitative and quantitative methodology is skillfully woven into a coherent narrative of the early history of the Canadian Bahãi'ã community.'' -- Mike McMullen, University of Houston-Clear Lake``One of the book's strengths is the author's ability to bring out the eminent ordinariness of the early Canadian Bahãi'ã s and how a typical population cross-section of any town could accomplish something so extraordinary. The prime importance of this book is it shows that in order to understand how a foreign religion can implant itself in a new environment, multiple paradigms for different periods in time are needed.... The author's research has produced a theory, that of `religious singleness,' which merits further investigation by scholars. Religious singleness refers to individuals who belong to a religion different from that of their family members, colleagues, and associates....It is hoped that the author's theory and work receive the attention they deserve in the academic world.'' -- Loni Bramson-Lerche -- The Journal of Bahãi'ã Studies``Meticulously and with myriads of details, van den Hoonaard has succeeded in uncovering the history and identity formation of this group which today numbers 15,000 out of a world total of about 5 million members.... What van den Hoonaard has accomplished with this book is the backbone of all research. Without such thorough, time-consuming, empirically oriented studies it is impossible to advance our general understanding of new religions.'' -- Margit Warburg, University of Copenhagen -- Studies in Religion``Van den Hoonaard's study is an important contribution to much-needed `detailed research onnon-Christian or non-Western styles of religious communities.' Methodologically, this book standson sound ground. Both interpretive historical sociology and the sociology of social movementsprovide the conceptual framework that guides, along the contours of a `shifting theoretical paradigm,' van den Hoonaard's analysis....The author adroitly and seamlessly combines both quantitative and qualitative research methods to provide `fresh theoretical orientations.''' -- Christopher Buck -- University of Toronto Quarterly

Read more less