American Cultural History: A Very Short Introduction

American Cultural History: A Very Short Introduction

Author: Eric Avila

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2018-07-17

Total Pages: 166

ISBN-13: 0190200596

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The iconic images of Uncle Sam and Marilyn Monroe, or the "fireside chats" of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the oratory of Martin Luther King, Jr.: these are the words, images, and sounds that populate American cultural history. From the Boston Tea Party to the Dodgers, from the blues to Andy Warhol, dime novels to Disneyland, the history of American culture tells us how previous generations of Americans have imagined themselves, their nation, and their relationship to the world and its peoples. This Very Short Introduction recounts the history of American culture and its creation by diverse social and ethnic groups. In doing so, it emphasizes the historic role of culture in relation to broader social, political, and economic developments. Across the lines of race, class, gender, and sexuality, as well as language, region, and religion, diverse Americans have forged a national culture with a global reach, inventing stories that have shaped a national identity and an American way of life. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.


American Ways

American Ways

Author: Maryanne Kearny Datesman

Publisher: Pearson Education ESL

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780131500860

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Indhold: Introduction: Understanding the Culture of the United States; Traditional American Values and Beliefs; The American Religious Heritage; The Frontier Heritages; The Heritage of Abundance; The World of American Business; Government and Politics in the United States; Ethnic and Racial Diversity in the United States; Education in the United States; How Americans spend their leisure time; The American Family; American Values at the Crossroads;


U.S. History

U.S. History

Author: P. Scott Corbett

Publisher:

Published: 2024-09-10

Total Pages: 1886

ISBN-13:

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U.S. History is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of most introductory courses. The text provides a balanced approach to U.S. history, considering the people, events, and ideas that have shaped the United States from both the top down (politics, economics, diplomacy) and bottom up (eyewitness accounts, lived experience). U.S. History covers key forces that form the American experience, with particular attention to issues of race, class, and gender.


The Culture of Public Problems

The Culture of Public Problems

Author: Joseph R. Gusfield

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 1981

Total Pages: 278

ISBN-13: 0226310949

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"Everyone knows 'drunk driving' is a 'serious' offense. And yet, everyone knows lots of 'drunk drivers' who don't get involved in accidents, don't get caught by the police, and manage to compensate adequately for their 'drunken disability.' Everyone also knows of 'drunk drivers' who have been arrested and gotten off easy. Gusfield's book dissects the conventional wisdom about 'drinking-driving' and examines the paradox of a 'serious' offense that is usually treated lightly by the judiciary and rarely carries social stigma."—Mac Marshall, Social Science and Medicine "A sophisticated and thoughtful critic. . . . Gusfield argues that the 'myth of the killer drunk' is a creation of the 'public culture of law.' . . . Through its dramatic development and condemnation of the anti-social character of the drinking-driver, the public law strengthens the illusion of moral consensus in American society and celebrates the virtues of a sober and orderly world."—James D. Orcutt, Sociology and Social Research "Joseph Gusfield denies neither the role of alcohol in highway accidents nor the need to do something about it. His point is that the research we conduct on drinking-driving and the laws we make to inhibit it tells us more about our moral order than about the effects of drinking-driving itself. Many will object to this conclusion, but none can ignore it. Indeed, the book will put many scientific and legal experts on the defensive as they face Gusfield's massive erudition, pointed analysis and criticism, and powerful argumentation. In The Culture of Public Problems, Gusfield presents the experts, and us, with a masterpiece of sociological reasoning."—Barry Schwartz, American Journal of Sociology This book is truly an outstanding achievement. . . . It is sociology of science, sociology of law, sociology of deviance, and sociology of knowledge. Sociologists generally should find the book of great theoretical interest, and it should stimulate personal reflection on their assumptions about science and the kind of consciousness it creates. They will also find that the book is a delight to read."—William B. Bankston, Social Forces


The Other America

The Other America

Author: Michael Harrington

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 1997-08

Total Pages: 254

ISBN-13: 068482678X

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Examines the economic underworld of migrant farm workers, the aged, minority groups, and other economically underprivileged groups.


Literature Suppressed on Political Grounds

Literature Suppressed on Political Grounds

Author: Nicholas J. Karolides

Publisher: Infobase Publishing

Published: 2014-05-14

Total Pages: 639

ISBN-13: 0816071519

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Literature Suppressed on Religious Grounds, Revised Edition profiles the censorship of many such essential works of literature. The entries new to this edition include extensive coverage of the Harry Potter series, which has been frequently banned in the United States on the grounds that it promotes witchcraft, as well as entries on two popular textbook series, The Witches by Roald Dahl, Women Without Men: A Novel of Modern Iran, and more. Also included are updates to such entries as The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie and On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin.


The Coddling of the American Mind

The Coddling of the American Mind

Author: Greg Lukianoff

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2018-09-04

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 0735224900

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Something is going wrong on many college campuses in the last few years. Rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide are rising. Speakers are shouted down. Students and professors say they are walking on eggshells and afraid to speak honestly. How did this happen? First Amendment expert Greg Lukianoff and social psychologist Jonathan Haidt show how the new problems on campus have their origins in three terrible ideas that have become increasingly woven into American childhood and education: what doesn’t kill you makes you weaker; always trust your feelings; and life is a battle between good people and evil people. These three Great Untruths are incompatible with basic psychological principles, as well as ancient wisdom from many cultures. They interfere with healthy development. Anyone who embraces these untruths—and the resulting culture of safetyism—is less likely to become an autonomous adult able to navigate the bumpy road of life. Lukianoff and Haidt investigate the many social trends that have intersected to produce these untruths. They situate the conflicts on campus in the context of America’s rapidly rising political polarization, including a rise in hate crimes and off-campus provocation. They explore changes in childhood including the rise of fearful parenting, the decline of unsupervised play, and the new world of social media that has engulfed teenagers in the last decade. This is a book for anyone who is confused by what is happening on college campuses today, or has children, or is concerned about the growing inability of Americans to live, work, and cooperate across party lines.


American Studies in a Moment of Danger

American Studies in a Moment of Danger

Author: George Lipsitz

Publisher: U of Minnesota Press

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 412

ISBN-13: 9780816639496

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The America that seems to be disappearing before our very eyes is, George Lipsitz argues, actually the cumulative creation of yesterday's struggles over identity, culture, and power. At a critical moment, this book offers a richly textured historical perspective on where our notions of national knowledge have come from and where they may lead. Showing how American studies has been shaped by the social movements of the 1930s, 1960s, and 1980s, Lipsitz identifies the ways in which the globalization of commerce and culture are producing radically new understandings of politics, performance, consumption, knowledge, and nostalgia. Book jacket.