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Tag Archives: sociology
Manhood in the Making
Manhood in the Making: Cultural Concepts of Masculinity272 pages© David Gilmore 1991 What is it to “be a man”? Manhood in the Making reviews various ethnographic studies that focused on sex and gender roles, throughout the world. In it, the … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews
Tagged gangs tribes and parties, men, Of Boys and Men, sexuality, sociology
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Dixie’s Forgotten People
Dixie’s Forgotten People: the South’s Poor Whites© 1979 Wayne Flynt200 pgs Just poor people is all we were, tryin’ to make a living out of black land dirt.. When Franklin Roosevelt referred to the forgotten man, he was likely thinking … Continue reading
Posted in history, Reviews
Tagged American South, history, labor, poverty, race, social history, sociology, Wayne Flynt
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Pedal to the Metal
Petal to the Metal: The Work Lives of Truckers© 1994 Lawrence Ouelett247 pages ICC is a-checkin’ on down the lineI’m a little overweight, and my logbook’s way behind But nothin’ bothers me tonight, I can dodge all the scales all … Continue reading
The Righteous Mind
The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion© 2013 Jonathan Haidt528 pages The Righteous Mind begins with a question, seriously posed: why can’t we all get along? To find the answer, Jonathan Haidt delves into the … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews
Tagged anthropology, evolution, manners and morals, philosophy, politics, Politics-CivicInterest, psychology, religion, sociobiology, sociology
6 Comments
Read of England 2012
Last week, Britons celebrated or observed Guy Fawkes Night on 5 November, a date I usually try to do some English-themed reading around, just as I do readings for the Fourth of July and Bastille Day. This year’s reading consisted … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews
Tagged anthropology, Bill Bryson, Britain, humor, sociology, travelogue
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The Great Good Place
The Great Good Place: Cafés, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and the Other Hangouts at the Heart of a Community© 1989 Ray Oldenburg336 pages In Our Oriental Heritage, Will Durant wrote that man is not willingly a political animal, … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews
Tagged food, food and drink, goods/services, humanities, personal favorite, social criticism, Society and Culture, sociology, urbanism
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Bowling Alone
Bowling Alone: the Collapse and Revival of American Community© 2001 Robert D. Putnam544 pages Every so often I read a book that strikes my brain as lightening, forever altering my thinking and earning a permanent place both on my bedside … Continue reading
American Nerd
American Nerd: the Story of my People© 2008 Benjamin Nugent224 pages First in my class here at M.I.T / Got skills, I’m a champion at D&D M.C. Escher, that’s my favorite MC Keep your forty, I’ll just have an Earl … Continue reading
The Road to Wigan Pier
The Road to Wigan Pier© 1937 George Orwell191 pages, including forward for members of the Left Book Club. (My own copy: I adore tattered old paperbacks.) I read this primarily for a European history class taught by … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews
Tagged Britain, George Orwell, poverty, social criticism, Society and Culture, sociology
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Off the Books
Off the Books: The Underground Economy of the Urban Poor© 2006 Sudhir Venkatesh426 pages In the spring, I read Sudhir Venkatesh’s Gang Leader for a Day, an analysis of gang life in one of Chicago’s more prominent street gangs, which … Continue reading