Karen Sternheimer è una sociologa che approfondisce l'intricato rapporto tra cultura popolare e gioventù. Il suo lavoro esamina criticamente come i media e le forze sociali plasmano l'esperienza adolescenziale e formano i giovani. Sternheimer porta una lente sociologica acuta sulle tendenze contemporanee, analizzandone il profondo impatto sulla società.
Examining the interplay between social issues and popular culture, this second edition delves into the underlying causes of societal concerns rather than merely attributing blame to popular media. It offers a critical analysis of how cultural narratives shape public perception and understanding of social problems, encouraging readers to think deeply about the connections between the two.
How Moral Crusaders Construct Meanings of Deviance and Delinquency
Exploring societal reactions to American popular culture over the last century, this text highlights moral panics surrounding comic books, music, and pinball machines. It aims to instill a "sociological imagination" in undergraduates, providing a critical perspective on contemporary moral crusaders who propose simplistic solutions to complex social issues. Ideal for courses on social problems, social deviance, and popular culture, it encourages readers to reflect on the deeper sociological implications of these cultural conflicts.
Addressing critical issues from early childhood to late adolescence, the book explores topics such as kidnapping, child safety, obesity, school safety, and bullying. It highlights the duality of fearing for youth while recognizing their ability to navigate challenges. The narrative emphasizes that despite societal concerns, young people often display better behavior than earlier generations, reflecting the complexities of growing up in a changing environment.
"Celebrity Culture and the American Dream, Second Edition" explores the evolution of celebrity culture influenced by economic and historical factors. It updates examples from early fan magazines to today's social media, examining the sociological significance of Hollywood celebrities and their impact on the American Dream and cultural class dynamics.
Why write for the public? -- Getting ready to write -- Writing for the public -- Publishing for the public -- Promoting your work to the public
"Prevailing perspectives on ancient Jewish life have been shaped largely by the voices of intellectual and social elites, preserved in the writings of Philo and Josephus and the rabbinic texts of the Mishnah and Talmud. Commissioned art, architecture, and formal inscriptions displayed on tombs and synagogues equally reflect the sensibilities of their influential patrons. The perspectives and sentiments of nonelite Jews, by contrast, have mostly disappeared from the historical record. Focusing on these forgotten Jews of antiquity, 'Writing on the Wall' takes an unprecedented look at the vernacular inscriptions and drawings they left behind and sheds new light on the richness of their quotidian lives. Just like their neighbors throughout the eastern and southern Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, Arabia, and Egypt, ancient Jews scribbled and drew graffiti everyplace--in and around markets, hippodromes, theaters, pagan temples, open cliffs, sanctuaries, and even inside burial caves and synagogues. Karen Stern reveals what these markings tell us about the men and women who made them, people whose lives, beliefs, and behaviors eluded commemoration in grand literary and architectural works. Making compelling analogies with modern graffiti practices, she documents the overlooked connections between Jews and their neighbors, showing how popular Jewish practices of prayer, mortuary commemoration, commerce, and civic engagement regularly crossed ethnic and religious boundaries."--Publisher information