Popular Culture in American History (Blackwell Readers in American Social and Cultural History)

Popular Culture in American History (Blackwell Readers in American Social and Cultural History) Review

Popular Culture in American History collects the most widely cited and important writings on three hundred years of American popular culture. Each of the ten essays serves as a case study of a particular moment, issue, or form of popular culture, from seventeenth-century chapbooks to hip hop. Pedagogical features include further reading lists, contextualizing editorial introductions, discussion questions and chronologies of key events.

The Public and Its Possibilities: Triumphs and Tragedies in the American City (Urban Life, Landscape and Policy)

The Public and Its Possibilities: Triumphs and Tragedies in the American City (Urban Life, Landscape and Policy) Review

The Public and Its Possibilities: Triumphs and Tragedies in the American City (Urban Life, Landscape and Policy) Feature

• ISBN13: 9781439902103
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In his compelling reinterpretation of American history, The Public and Its Possibilities, John Fairfield argues that our unrealized civic aspirations provide the essential counterpoint to an excessive focus on private interests. Inspired by the revolutionary generation, nineteenth-century Americans struggled to build an economy and a culture to complement their republican institutions. But over the course of the twentieth century, a corporate economy and consumer culture undercut civic values, conflating consumer and citizen. Fairfield places the city at the center of American experience, describing how a resilient demand for an urban participatory democracy has bumped up against the fog of war, the allure of the marketplace, and persistent prejudices of race, class, and gender. In chronicling and synthesizing centuries of U.S. historyoincluding the struggles of the antislavery, labor, women's rights movementsoFairfield explores the ebb and flow of civic participation, activism, and democracy. He revisits what the public has done for civic activism, and the possibility of taking a greater role. In this age where there has been a move towards greater participation in America's public life from its citizens, Fairfield's bookowritten in an accessible, jargon-free style and addressed to general readersois especially topical.

Tramps Like Us: Music and Meaning among Springsteen Fans

Tramps Like Us: Music and Meaning among Springsteen Fans Review

As rock critics have noted in the past, Bruce Springsteen's songs exist in a world of their own--they have their own settings, characters, words, and images. It is a world that even those who know only a handful of Springsteen's lyrics can instantly recognize, a world of highways and factories, loners and underdogs, hot rods and patrol cars. And it is a world that stretches far beyond the New Jersey state line. Indeed, Springsteen's attention to the ideals and struggles of ordinary Americans has significantly influenced American popular culture and public debate. As a rock-and-roll troubadour, "the Boss" speaks not only for his many fans but to them, and often with a directness or sincerity that no other performer can match.

But what can be said of the fans themselves? Why and how do they relate to Springsteen's words and music? Based on three years of ethnographic research amid Springsteen's fans, and informed by the author's own experiences and impressions as a fan, Daniel Cavicchi's Tramps Like Us is an interdisciplinary study of the ways in which ordinary people form special, sustained attachments to a particular singer/songwriter and his songs, and of how these attachments function in people's lives. An "insider's narrative" about Springsteen fans--who they are, what they do, and why they do it--this book also investigates the phenomenon of fandom in general. The text oscillates between fans' stories and ideas and Cavicchi's own anecdotes, commentary, and analysis. It challenges the stereotypes of fans as obsessive, delusional, and even mentally ill, and explores fandom as a normal socio-cultural activity. Ultimately, this book argues that music fandom is a useful and meaningful behavior that enables us to shape identities, create communities, and make sense of the world--both Bruce's and our own.

The New World of Mr Tompkins: George Gamow's Classic Mr Tompkins in Paperback

The New World of Mr Tompkins: George Gamow's Classic Mr Tompkins in Paperback Review

Mr. Tompkins is back! The mild-mannered bank clerk with the short attention span and vivid imagination has inspired, charmed, and informed young and old alike since the publication of the hugely successful Mr Tompkins in Paperback (by George Gamow) in 1965. Now, this highly affable character returns to embark on a set of adventures that explore the extreme edges of the universe--the smallest, the largest, the fastest, and the farthest. Just by following the experiences and dreams of Mr. Tompkins, readers discover and come to know the merry dance of cosmic mysteries, including: Einstein's theory of relativity, bizarre effects near light-speed, the birth and death of the universe, black holes, quarks, space warps and antimatter, the fuzzy world of the quantum, and that ultimate cosmic mystery--love. The story of Mr. Tompkins' journey to the frontiers of modern physics will delight and inform all readers. Russell Stannard is a best-selling popular science writer and the author of the critically acclaimed Uncle Albert series of science books for children.

Shark-Infested Waters: The Saatchi Collection of British Art in the 90s

Shark-Infested Waters: The Saatchi Collection of British Art in the 90s Review

Charles Saatchi's collection of young British artists is one of the most celebrated collections of contemporary art in the world. 'But is it art?' was a frequent cry during the mid-90s, when he exhibited the works of artists such as Damien Hirst, Marc Quinn, Gavin Turk and Marcus Harvey. Artists such as these soon fulfilled their promise and consolidated their reputations, vindicating Saatchi's enthusiasm and their inclusion in this eclectic group. The book explores the ideas, aspirations and attitudes that inform each artist and the way that they are manifested in the end product. This publication, long out of print, remains an essential record of 35 artists that were collected by Charles Saatchi during the 1990s and is being reprinted to celebrate the opening of the new Saatchi Gallery later this year.

The book explores the ideas, aspirations and attitudes that inform each artist and the way that they are manifested in the end product.

This publication, long out of print, remains an essential record of 35 artists that were collected by Charles Saatchi during the 1990s and is being reprinted to celebrate the opening of the new Saatchi Gallery later this year.

'Art today makes approaches towards the unknowable... artists reflect something both psychological and social off that gaze, something that may hint at the face the future will present. In this activity artist and critic are linked in an intimate collaboration. The artist makes unverifiable hypotheses or intuitive proposals about the unknown, and the critic drives out into the verbal open their networks of implications.' Thomas McEvilley, 'Father the void' in 'Tyne International: a new necessity' 1990, p.133.

The name of this book is derived from Damien Hirst's extraordinary sculpture, 'The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living,' 1992, a fourteen-foot tiger shark suspended in a tank of formaldehyde. It is appropriate that Hirst should introduce this anthology, since he was responsible for making visible many of the artists included in these pages and, in many people's minds, has come to epitomize the wild boy whose shock tactics and cool media manner give art a high profile and a bad name. His presence emphatically colours the 20water.

In 1988 while still a student at Goldsmiths', Hirst organized 'Freeze,' an exhibition that included sixteen of his fellow students. This marked the beginning of a vital period of optimism and enthusiasm. The recession provided a plentiful supply of empty factories, warehouses and offices and young artists seized the initiative, raised funds and mounted further shows such as 'Modern Medicine' and 'Gambler' in these dramatic spaces.

Charles Saatchi had been collecting their work and bought Hirst's first major piece, 'A Thousand Years,' with its rotting cow's head and flies. Support of this kind is of incalculable value; it sustains energy and optimism. Whereas struggling in a vacuum is soul-destroying, the prospect of having one's work enter a major collection provides both a goal and a context; it generates hope. Damien Hirst's shark swam into view in the first show of Young British Artists mounted at the Saatchi Gallery in 1992 and attracted unprecedented media attention.

At first sight there seem to be few links between the thirty-five artists represented in this book. What possible preoccupations could be shared by a minimalist painter and a pickler of sharks? In writing about them, the author was determined not to impose artificial groupings. Despite their work being lumped together under the rubric of 'conceptualism,' often by those hostile to it, these artists do not form a group or a school. Many of them studied at Goldsmiths' and some are friends, but others have never met or even heard of one another. Kerry Stewart graduated only recently, Jenny Saville lives in Scotland, Carina Weidle has returned to Brazil and, although most of the others live in London, it is a big city. There is no cafe society or artists' meeting place and these people do not form a cosy coterie.

The Selfish Gene: 30th Anniversary Edition--with a new Introduction by the Author

The Selfish Gene: 30th Anniversary Edition--with a new Introduction by the Author Review

Richard Dawkins' brilliant reformulation of the theory of natural selection has the rare distinction of having provoked as much excitement and interest outside the scientific community as within it. His theories have helped change the whole nature of the study of social biology, and have forced thousands of readers to rethink their beliefs about life.
In his internationally bestselling, now classic volume, The Selfish Gene, Dawkins explains how the selfish gene can also be a subtle gene. The world of the selfish gene revolves around savage competition, ruthless exploitation, and deceit, and yet, Dawkins argues, acts of apparent altruism do exist in nature. Bees, for example, will commit suicide when they sting to protect the hive, and birds will risk their lives to warn the flock of an approaching hawk.
This 30th anniversary edition of Dawkins' fascinating book retains all original material, including the two enlightening chapters added in the second edition. In a new Introduction the author presents his thoughts thirty years after the publication of his first and most famous book, while the inclusion of the two-page original Foreword by brilliant American scientist Robert Trivers shows the enthusiastic reaction of the scientific community at that time. This edition is a celebration of a remarkable exposition of evolutionary thought, a work that has been widely hailed for its stylistic brilliance and deep scientific insights, and that continues to stimulate whole new areas of research today.

Paranormal Claims: A Critical Analysis

Paranormal Claims: A Critical Analysis Review

This academic text features articles regarding paranormal, extraordinary, or fringe-science claims. It logically examines the claims of astrology; psychic ability; alternative medicine and health claims; after-death communication; cryptozoology; and faith healing, all from a skeptical perspective. Paranormal Claims is a compilation of some of the most eye-opening articles about pseudoscience and extraordinary claims that often reveal logical, scientific explanations, or an outright scam. These articles, steeped in skepticism, teach critical thinking when approaching courses in psychology, sociology, philosophy, education, or science.

The Dating Game: One Man's Search for the Age of the Earth

The Dating Game: One Man's Search for the Age of the Earth Review

How old is the Earth? At the end of the nineteenth century, scientists were all looking for a clock that would provide an answer to this, the greatest Time question of all. The Dating Game tells the story of one man's vision of developing a geological timescale, a great vision which lasted fifty years despite scientific opposition, financial hardship and personal tragedy. Arthur Holmes fought to convince The Establishment of an Earth of great antiquity: a fight which eventually transformed the moribund 'art' of geology into a dynamic science.

Religion and Its Monsters

Religion and Its Monsters Review

Religion's great and powerful mystery fascinates us, but it also terrifies. So too the monsters that haunt the stories of the Judeo-Christian mythos and earlier traditions: Leviathan, Behemoth, dragons, and other beasts. In this unusual and provocative book, Timothy K. Beal writes about the monsters that lurk in our religious texts, and about how monsters and religion are deeply entwined. Horror and faith are inextricable. Ans as monsters are part of religious texts and traditions, so religion lurks in the modern horror genre, from its birth in Dante's Inferno to the contemporary spookiness of H.P. Lovecraft and the Hellraiser films. Religion and ItsMonsters is essential reading for students of religion and popular culture, as well as any readers with an interest in horror.

Cinema and Radio in Britain and America, 1920-60 (Studies in Popular Culture)

Cinema and Radio in Britain and America, 1920-60 (Studies in Popular Culture) Review

Cinema and Radio in Britain and America, 1920-60 charts the evolving relationship between the two principle mass media of the period. It explores, for the first time in print, the creative symbiosis that developed between the two, including regular film versions of popular radio series as well as radio versions of hit films.

 

This fascinating volume examines specific genres (comedy and detective stories) to identify similarities and differences in their media appearances, and in particular issues arising from the nature of film as predominantly visual and radio as exclusively aural. Richards also highlights the interchange of personnel, such as Orson Welles, between the two media. Throughout the book runs the theme of comparison and contrast between the experiences of the two media in Britain and America. The book culminates with an in-depth analysis of the media appearances of three enduring mythic figures in popular culture: Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan and The Scarlet Pimpernel.

 

Students, scholars and lay enthusiasts of cinema history, cultural history and media studies will find this an accessible yet scholarly read.

The Oxford Companion to the Year: An Exploration of Calendar Customs and Time-Reckoning

The Oxford Companion to the Year: An Exploration of Calendar Customs and Time-Reckoning Review

What are the halcyon days? On what date do the dog days begin? What is Hansel Monday? How do Chinese, Muslim, Mesoamerican, Jewish, and Babylonian calendars differ from Christian calendars? The answers to these and hundreds of other intriguing questions about the way humans have marked and measured time over the millennia can be found in The Oxford Companion to the Year.
The desire to set aside certain periods of time to mark their significance is a transhistorical, transcultural phenomena. Virtually all cultures have marked special days or periods: the feast day of a saint, the celebration of a historical event, the turning of a season, a period of fasting, the birthday of an important historical figure. Around these days a rich body of traditions, beliefs, and superstitions have grown up, many of them only half-remembered today. Now, for the first time, Bonnie Blackburn and Leofranc Holford-Strevens combine this body of knowledge with a wide-ranging survey of calendars across cultures in an authoritative and engaging one-volume reference work. The first section of The Oxford Companion to the Year is a day-by-day survey of the calendar year, revealing the history, literature, legend, and lore associated with each season, month, and day. The second part provides a broader study of time-reckoning: historical and modern calendars, religious and civil, are explained, with handy tables for the conversion of dates between various systems and a helpful index to facilitate speedy reference.
The Oxford Companion to the Year is a unique and uniquely delightful reference source, an indispensable aid for all historians and antiquarians, and a rich mine of information and inspiration for browsers.

Empty Nesting: Reinventing Your Marriage When the Kids Leave Home

Empty Nesting: Reinventing Your Marriage When the Kids Leave Home Review

Fighting forYour Empty Nest-Marriage offers clear-cut instructions for dealing with one of the most difficult periods in any marriage. . .the transition period when the children leave home. Based on the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP) and the results of a national survey of long-term married couples, this warm and helpful guide is brimming with practical suggestions and wisdom for learning to let-go of the kids and preserving the sense of commitment, love, partnership, sensuality and fun within a marriage.

Lion Taming: The Courage to Deal with Difficult People, Including Yourself

Lion Taming: The Courage to Deal with Difficult People, Including Yourself Review

Combining keen wit and penetrating insight, Betty Perkins develops the idea that difficult people (lions) are opportunities not obstacles. A difficult relationship can be a catalyst for personal growth. Here you can learn how difficult people show you what to heal in yourself, how you can accept and express anger without creating conflict and how you can relate to people who are rejecting, critical, abusive or withdrawn. With useful case histories, examples and notes on how to develop your skills with easy-to-follow-exercises Lion Taming is a superb book for professionals in the social services field as well as proving useful in any family or work situation.

The Human Odyssey: Four Million Years of Human Evolution

The Human Odyssey: Four Million Years of Human Evolution Review

This newly updated text chronicles a history of human evolution starting three and a half million years ago, when two upright figures walked together across the Laetoli desert in Tanzania, and their footsteps were captured forever in volcanic ash. Were these remarkable footprints made by one of our earliest ancestors, and what can they tell us about the human evolutionary journey?This is just one of me puzzles of the compelling story of human evolution explored in this volume. Based on the new Hall of Human Biology and Evolution at the American Museum of Natural History, the most extensive exhibition of the subject ever designed, The Human Odyssey examines how both significant fossil finds and startling new theories have been used by scientists to trace the path of human evolution.Here are the stories behind such famous fossil discoveries as Gigantopithecus, the "Black Skull," "Java Man," and "Lucy," and the surprising clues they reveal about the date and place of human origins. Here too are the bold theories and controversies that have influenced the field of evolution, from the idea of natural selection put forth by Charles Darwin to the new role that DNA analysis plays in fossil research.Illustrated throughout with more than a hundred photographs, drawings, maps, and stunning artistic re-creations of early humans and their environment. The Human Odyssey is virtually a portable museum devoted to this fascinating subject. Drawing from the latest research in both the laboratory and the field, it clearly illuminates some of the most provocative questions scientists have ever asked: Where did we come from, and how did we become what we are today?

Essential Tremor: The Facts

Essential Tremor: The Facts Review

Essential Tremor is the most common movement disorder in the world, and affects between 4 and 40 people per 1000 of the population amongst all ethnic groups. Characterised by shaking hands, this disorder can affect the head, voice and legs, and is often made worse by physical and emotional stress. Essential Tremor: The Facts provides a comprehensive guide to understanding this disorder and minimising its impact upon the lives of sufferers, their friends and families. It begins with a close look at what essential tremor is and how it should be diagnosed, as well as details on who gets the disorder, the causes, and how it affects sufferers day-to-day lives. Current treatment options are covered, along with patient advice on how to cope with the stigma of essential tremor, as well as the disability and social handicap it invokes. The book concludes with a chapter on the future and prospects of a potential cure.

Firsting and Lasting: Writing Indians out of Existence in New England (Indigenous Americas)

Firsting and Lasting: Writing Indians out of Existence in New England (Indigenous Americas) Review

Across nineteenth-century New England, antiquarians and community leaders wrote hundreds of local histories about the founding and growth of their cities and towns. Ranging from pamphlets to multivolume treatments, these narratives shared a preoccupation with establishing the region as the cradle of an Anglo-Saxon nation and the center of a modern American culture. They also insisted, often in mournful tones, that New England’s original inhabitants, the Indians, had become extinct, even though many Indians still lived in the very towns being chronicled.

 

In Firsting and Lasting, Jean M. O’Brien argues that local histories became a primary means by which European Americans asserted their own modernity while denying it to Indian peoples. Erasing and then memorializing Indian peoples also served a more pragmatic colonial goal: refuting Indian claims to land and rights. Drawing on more than six hundred local histories from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island written between 1820 and 1880, as well as censuses, monuments, and accounts of historical pageants and commemorations, O’Brien explores how these narratives inculcated the myth of Indian extinction, a myth that has stubbornly remained in the American consciousness.

 

In order to convince themselves that the Indians had vanished despite their continued presence, O’Brien finds that local historians and their readers embraced notions of racial purity rooted in the century’s scientific racism and saw living Indians as “mixed” and therefore no longer truly Indian. Adaptation to modern life on the part of Indian peoples was used as further evidence of their demise. Indians did not—and have not—accepted this effacement, and O’Brien details how Indians have resisted their erasure through narratives of their own. These debates and the rich and surprising history uncovered in O’Brien’s work continue to have a profound influence on discourses about race and indigenous rights.

Global Hollywood: No. 2

Global Hollywood: No. 2 Review

Why is Hollywood so successful? Overwhelming almost every other national cinema and virtually extinguishing foreign cinema in the multicultural United States, Hollywood seems powerful around the globe. This book draws from political economy, cultural studies, and cultural policy analysis to highlight the material factors underlining this apparent artistic success. 

This new edition brings the arguments completely up-to-date by taking into consideration important developments such as 9/11, shifts in the exchange rate, transformations in U.S. foreign policy, and significant developments in trade agreements, consumer technology, and ownership regimes. Each chapter has been substantially revised, and major new sections on India and China have been added.