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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social institutions > Family & relationships
How was the law used to control sex in Tudor England? What were the differences between secular and religious practice? This major study reveals that - contrary to what historians have often supposed - in pre-Reformation England both ecclesiastical and secular (especially urban) courts were already highly active in regulating sex. They not only enforced clerical celibacy and sought to combat prostitution but also restrained the pre- and extramarital sexual activities of laypeople more generally. Initially destabilising, the religious and institutional changes of 1530-60 eventually led to important new developments that tightened the regime further. There were striking innovations in the use of shaming punishments in provincial towns and experiments in the practice of public penance in the church courts, while Bridewell transformed the situation in London. Allowing the clergy to marry was a milestone of a different sort. Together these changes contributed to a marked shift in the moral climate by 1600.
THE SOCIAL ORGANIZATION OF WORK, Fifth Edition, follows a simple structure and uses clear writing to present the material you need in an easily accessible format. This text discusses the most current and hotly debated issues, from the technology revolution to women's issues to the globalization of today's workforce.
aAt her best, Moore has a frank, breezy manner that may be partly
due to her practical experience outside academe. . . . Sperm Counts
is a lively, funny read.a aWhile nearly every point she makes about the hidden significance of sperm is a home run, ultimately, this is an academic sociological study written in an appropriately starchy style. . . . [that] results in a fascinating read packed with conclusions.a -- "City Paper" aSo fascinating and fresh. . . . Should be required reading for scholars in sexuality/queer studies, womenas and gender studies, social studies of science and cultural studies. . .. Essential.a--"Choice" aSperm Counts is careful to include the history of semen
research, as well as examining its role today. . . . [Moore]
approach[es] the topic of semen with precision and
diligence.a aCartoon line-drawings of sperm wriggle over each page of text
in this dissection of the ways societal views of sperm shape
culture. A feminist account backed by sociological and scientific
research, Mooreas academic tome is accessible to the masses.a Moore has analyzed religious, social, erotic and medical-scientifc investments in sperm, singular and plural.a--"Feminist Review" aIn Sperm Counts, Moore's new book about the cultural meanings
of sperm, she tells this story to illustrate her own childhood
naivetA(c) about a substance that, as she now sees it, is far from
simple. These days, according to Moore, sperm has tremendous
cultural meaning--and looking at it in its many contexts, from
children's books to pornography, can tell us a great deal about the
skittish state of American masculinity. . . .Sperm Counts is a
serious book, and the first on its subject. But it also includes
anecdotes from Mooreas life, lending it a more conversational tone
than most academic works. The bookas margins are even squiggled
with sketches of sperm--flip the pages and they swim around. (This
is a subject matter, after all, that requires a certain degree of
levity.) Moore happily lists spermatic nicknames (ababy gravy, a
agentlemenas relish, a apimp juicea) before skewering, in a later
chapter, the burgeoning home sperm-test industry (sample ad slogan:
aI donat know how that semen got in my underwear!a).a a[Moore] examines how sperm is seen through a variety of social
lenses, including pornography, sperm banking, childrenas books on
reproduction and criminal DNA evidence.a aIrresistable. . . . A really rich read.a aIncredibly well researched and captivating read.a aA clever yet comprehensive look at the asubstancea of manhood.
Moore goes where few scholars dare to tread, and uses bodily fluids
as a revealing window through which to observe the current nature
of sexuality and gender relations.a aSperm Counts is a serious book, and the first on its subject.
But it also includes anecdotes from Moore's life, lending it a more
conversational tone than most academic works. The book's margins
are even squiggled with sketches of sperm -- flip the pages and
they swim around. (This is a subject matter, after all, that
requires a certain degree of levity.) Moore happily lists spermatic
nicknames ("baby gravy," "gentlemen'srelish," "pimp juice") before
skewering, in a later chapter, the burgeoning home sperm-test
industry (sample ad slogan: "I don't know how that semen got in my
underwear!").a "In this intriguing feminist sociological account of sperm,
Moore takes a subject we think we knew all about and proceeds to
examine the multi-dimensional facets of its cultural subtexts. What
is so unusual about this provocative book is the way Moore meshes
history, technology, medicine, criminology, gender studies,
children's books, and porn in her depiction of sperm as a
manifestation of masculinity. Sperm Counts is witty, erudite, and
informative-- a gem of social constructionist scholarship." aMoore has crafted a smart and surprisingly funny book about
semen. Original and refreshing, Sperm Counts follows the alittle
guysa through laboratories, childrenas books, sex work, crime
scenes, and bodies, illuminating varied meanings and
representations of manhood and masculinity. This is engaged
feminist scholarship at its best.a It has been called sperm, semen, seed, cum, jizz, spunk, gentlemen's relish, and splooge. But however the "tacky, opaque liquid that comes out of the penis" is described, the very act of defining "sperm" and "semen" depends on your point of view. For Lisa Jean Moore, how sperm comes to be known is based on who defines it (a scientist vs. a defense witness, for example), under what social circumstances it is found (a doctor's office vs. a crime scene), and for what purposes it will be used (invitro fertilization vs. DNA analysis). Examining semen historically, medically, and culturally, Sperm Counts is a penetrating exploration of its meaning and power. Using a "follow that sperm" approach, Moore shows how representations of sperm and semen are always in flux, tracing their twisting journeys from male reproductive glands to headline news stories and presidential impeachment trials. Much like the fluid of semen itself can leak onto fabrics and into bodies, its meanings seep into our consciousness over time. Moore's analytic lens yields intriguing observations of how sperm is "spent" and "reabsorbed" as it spurts, swims, and careens through penises, vaginas, test tubes, labs, families, cultures, and politics. Drawn from fifteen years of research, Sperm Counts examines historical and scientific documents, children's "facts of life" books, pornography, the Internet, forensic transcripts and sex worker narratives to explain how semen got so complicated. Among other things, understanding how we produce, represent, deploy and institutionalize semen-biomedically, socially and culturally-provides valuable new perspectives on the changing social position of men and the evolving meanings of masculinity. Ultimately, as Moore reveals, sperm is intimately involved in not only the physical reproduction of males and females, but in how we come to understand ourselves as men and women.
First published in 1977. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
A generation ago Americans undertook a revolutionary experiment to redefine marriage. Where historically men and women had sought a loving bond, largely centered on the rearing of children, the new arrangement called for an intimate-and provisional-union of two adults. Now, as Kay Hymowitz argues in Marriage and Caste in America, the results of this experiment separating marriage from childrearing are in, and they turn out to be bad news not only for children but also, in ways little understood, for the country as a whole. The family revolution has played a central role in a growing inequality and high rates of poverty, even during economic good times. The family upheaval has hit African-Americans especially hard, Ms. Hymowitz shows, as Daniel Patrick Moynihan had famously predicted it would. While for decades feminists and academics toyed with the myth of the strong single black mother supported by kinship networks, black men drifted into fatherhood without being husbands, without even becoming part of a family, while black children were left behind.When Americans began their family revolution, they forgot to consider what American marriage was designed to do: it ordered lives by giving the young a meaningful life script. It supported middle-class foresight, planning, and self-sufficiency. And it organized men and women around The Mission-nurturing their children's cognitive, emotional, and physical development. More than anything, Ms. Hymowitz writes, it is The Mission that separates middle-class kids-who for all their overscheduling are doing very well indeed-from their less-parented and lower-achieving peers. In fact our great family experiment threatens to turn what the founders imagined as an opportunity-rich republic of equal citizens into a hereditary caste society.
For most of western history, all sex outside marriage was illegal, with the church and state punishing any dissent. Between 1600 and 1800, this entire world-view was shattered by revolutionary new ideas - that consenting adults have the freedom to do what they like with their own bodies, and morality cannot be imposed by force. This groundbreaking book shows that the creation of this modern culture of sex - broadcasted and debated in a rapidly expanding universe of public media - was a central part of the Enlightenment, and helped create a new model of western civilization whose principles of equality, privacy and individual freedom last to this day.
Perspectives on Modern South Asia presents an exciting core collection of essays drawn from anthropology, literary and cultural studies, history, sociology, economics, and political science to reveal the complexities of a region that is home to a fifth of humanity. * Presents an interdisciplinary overview of the origins and development of the eight nations comprising modern South Asia: Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka * Explores South Asia s common cultures, languages and religions and their relationship to its ethnic and national differences * Features essays that provide understandings of the central dynamics of South Asia as an important cultural, political, and economic region of the world
THE MARRIAGE & FAMILY EXPERIENCE offers a realistic look at relationships today, helping you see and understand the underlying issues at work in marriages, families, and all kinds of relationships. Real-life cross-cultural examples and features that encourage you to reflect on your own life and behavior make the thirteenth edition accessible and compelling. You'll find up-to-date information on adoptive parenting, childbearing patterns, gay and lesbian families, the transgender experience, the meaning of virginity, gender roles, communication and conflict resolution, the influence of popular culture, and working families. With thorough coverage that reflects the diversity of families and relationships, the book illustrates how racial, cultural, economic and sexual differences shape relationships and families, and offers a straightforward overview of the topics you must understand to succeed in your course. This is a book you can relate to -- and one you will want to read.
In a deep dark forest, Little Coyote grows up with a tough gang of big strong coyotes. They are cruel, call him names and order him about all day long. Little Coyote is too small to run away or to stand up for himself, so he learns to do what he's told and makes his body small so nobody notices him. Then, one day he goes on an adventure and ends up discovering new hidden strengths that he never knew he had. This therapeutic picture book is written to help children aged 4-10 and adults to talk about difficult experiences growing up (including things they may still be going through), and explores how they can affect how your body feels and reacts to things. It is followed by easy to read advice for adults on how to help your child.
During the past ten years, legal and political changes in the
United States have dramatically altered the legalization process
for millions of undocumented immigrants and their families. Faced
with fewer legalization options, immigrants without legal status
and their supporters have organized around the concept of the
family as a political subject--a political subject with its rights
violated by immigration laws.
Premarital sex, consensual relations, bigamy, polygamy, births out of wedlock, and clandestine affairs between clergy and laity were common components of everyday society in colonial Latin America. "Private Passions and Public Sins" focuses on the frequency and significance of illegitimacy and extramarital relationships in Lima, Peru, during the seventeenth century. Lima was Maria Mannarelli's selection for this study because it was the administrative, commercial, and religious center of the Viceroyalty of Peru and was home to numerous ethnic and social groups. Chapter one deals with the Iberian family and extramarital relations in fifteenth-century Spain. Chapter two reconstructs the unequal numbers of men and women in Lima's population throughout the century. Chapter three shows the reactions of civil and church authorities and ordinary citizens to extramarital relationships. Chapter four explores adultery and chapter five follows with illegitimacy and its significance in Lima's society. The relationship between illegitimacy and women is the focus of chapter six, with a view of colonial women and the emphasis on control of sexuality. The problem of child abandonment resulting from extramarital relationships is discussed in chapter seven.
View the Table of Contents aThoughtful, persuasive, solidly constructed, and likely to endure the test of time.a--"Choice" aHalf the 14 essays in this interdisciplinary study of
seventeenth- through nineteenth-century America are
reprints--though it's useful to have work that appeared in academic
journals collected in one place. Among original work, Ramon A.
Gutierrez's revisionist perspective on Native American "berdache"
will raise the most eyebrows: rather than exalt their same-sex
spirituality, fashionable among gay liberationists and radical
faeries alike, the author's theory is that they led lives of sexual
ahumiliation and endless work, not of celebration and veneration.a
Among the reprints, Caleb Crain's account of a romantic triangle
among three Philadelphia men that began in 1786, culled from their
diaries, is the sweetest. Several essays draw on court records
dating back as far as three hundred years to unearth queer lives,
while others glean an intriguing and instructive glimpse of the
past through a reading of Colonial-era fiction and
journalism.a aIlluminate[s] the complexity, breadth, and social impact of sexuality in history.a--"The Gay & Lesbian Review" aAn excellent introduction to the dynamic new work on sexuality
in colonial and early national America, which not only expands our
understanding of early America but forces us to rethink paradigms
and periodizations that have long governed histories of sexuality
in the U.S. A valuable contribution.a aThis splendid collection illustrates the maturation of lesbian
and gay history. The early American era emerges as arich period for
understanding same-sex desire in both law and culture. It also
proves critical for re-evaluating the dominant interpretations of
the emergence of modern homosexual identities.a aThis book fills a huge gap in research on same-sex sexuality,
and usefully complicates our historical understanding of acts and
identities. Long before Stonewall there were sexual identities! But
their character will surprise you.a aRepresents an important contribution to American historical and sexuality studies.a--"The Gay & Lesbian Review/Worldwide" "A major, ground-breaking study of early America. Readers will
come away with a fresh sense of the centrality of sexuality to any
understanding of the formation of the new Republic." "This splendid collection, interdisciplinary but deeply
historical, illustrates the maturation of lesbian and gay history
as it has expanded its chronological and regional scope and its
methodological depths.." Although the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City symbolically mark the start of the gay rights movement, individuals came together long before the modern era to express their same-sex romantic and sexual attraction toward one another, and in a myriad of ways. Some reflected on their desires in quiet solitude, while others endured verbal, physical, and legal harassment for publicly expressing homosexual interest through words or actions. Long Before Stonewall seeks touncover the many iterations of same-sex desire in colonial America and the early Republic, as well as to expand the scope of how we define and recognize homosocial behavior. Thomas A. Foster has assembled a path-breaking, interdisciplinary collection of original and classic essays that explore topics ranging from homoerotic imagery of black men to prison reform to the development of sexual orientations. This collection spans a regional and temporal breadth that stretches from the colonial Southwest to Quaker communities in New England. It also includes a challenge to commonly accepted understandings of the Native American berdache. Throughout, connections of race, class, status, and gender are emphasized, exposing the deep foundations on which modern sexual political movements and identities are built.
The second book from Sunday Times bestselling author Casey Watson. Two weeks after saying farewell to her first foster child, Casey is asked to look after Sophia, a troubled 12-year-old with a sad past. Sophia s actions are disturbing and provocative and, before long, Casey and her family find themselves in a dark and dangerous situation. Two years ago Sophia s mother had a terrible accident. Sophia has been in care ever since. Right away, Casey feels something isn t right. Sophia s a well-developed girl, who looks more like 18 than 12. She only seems to have eyes and ears for men, and treats all women with contempt and disgust. And she has everyone around her jumping through hoops. Over time, as more details begin to emerge about Sophia s past, it becomes clear that her behaviour is a front for an early life filled with pain and suffering. But although Casey feels she is gradually breaking through to Sophia and getting her to open up about things she has never spoken about before, her violence is threatening the safety of the whole family, forcing Casey to question whether she can really handle this lost and damaged girl. Both shocking and inspiring, this true story will shed new light on the extreme and sometimes dangerous nature of foster care."
aAt her best, Moore has a frank, breezy manner that may be partly
due to her practical experience outside academe. . . . Sperm Counts
is a lively, funny read.a aWhile nearly every point she makes about the hidden significance of sperm is a home run, ultimately, this is an academic sociological study written in an appropriately starchy style. . . . [that] results in a fascinating read packed with conclusions.a -- "City Paper" aSo fascinating and fresh. . . . Should be required reading for scholars in sexuality/queer studies, womenas and gender studies, social studies of science and cultural studies. . .. Essential.a--"Choice" aSperm Counts is careful to include the history of semen
research, as well as examining its role today. . . . [Moore]
approach[es] the topic of semen with precision and
diligence.a aCartoon line-drawings of sperm wriggle over each page of text
in this dissection of the ways societal views of sperm shape
culture. A feminist account backed by sociological and scientific
research, Mooreas academic tome is accessible to the masses.a Moore has analyzed religious, social, erotic and medical-scientifc investments in sperm, singular and plural.a--"Feminist Review" aIn Sperm Counts, Moore's new book about the cultural meanings
of sperm, she tells this story to illustrate her own childhood
naivetA(c) about a substance that, as she now sees it, is far from
simple. These days, according to Moore, sperm has tremendous
cultural meaning--and looking at it in its many contexts, from
children's books to pornography, can tell us a great deal about the
skittish state of American masculinity. . . .Sperm Counts is a
serious book, and the first on its subject. But it also includes
anecdotes from Mooreas life, lending it a more conversational tone
than most academic works. The bookas margins are even squiggled
with sketches of sperm--flip the pages and they swim around. (This
is a subject matter, after all, that requires a certain degree of
levity.) Moore happily lists spermatic nicknames (ababy gravy, a
agentlemenas relish, a apimp juicea) before skewering, in a later
chapter, the burgeoning home sperm-test industry (sample ad slogan:
aI donat know how that semen got in my underwear!a).a a[Moore] examines how sperm is seen through a variety of social
lenses, including pornography, sperm banking, childrenas books on
reproduction and criminal DNA evidence.a aIrresistable. . . . A really rich read.a aIncredibly well researched and captivating read.a aA clever yet comprehensive look at the asubstancea of manhood.
Moore goes where few scholars dare to tread, and uses bodily fluids
as a revealing window through which to observe the current nature
of sexuality and gender relations.a aSperm Counts is a serious book, and the first on its subject.
But it also includes anecdotes from Moore's life, lending it a more
conversational tone than most academic works. The book's margins
are even squiggled with sketches of sperm -- flip the pages and
they swim around. (This is a subject matter, after all, that
requires a certain degree of levity.) Moore happily lists spermatic
nicknames ("baby gravy," "gentlemen'srelish," "pimp juice") before
skewering, in a later chapter, the burgeoning home sperm-test
industry (sample ad slogan: "I don't know how that semen got in my
underwear!").a "In this intriguing feminist sociological account of sperm,
Moore takes a subject we think we knew all about and proceeds to
examine the multi-dimensional facets of its cultural subtexts. What
is so unusual about this provocative book is the way Moore meshes
history, technology, medicine, criminology, gender studies,
children's books, and porn in her depiction of sperm as a
manifestation of masculinity. Sperm Counts is witty, erudite, and
informative-- a gem of social constructionist scholarship." aMoore has crafted a smart and surprisingly funny book about
semen. Original and refreshing, Sperm Counts follows the alittle
guysa through laboratories, childrenas books, sex work, crime
scenes, and bodies, illuminating varied meanings and
representations of manhood and masculinity. This is engaged
feminist scholarship at its best.a It has been called sperm, semen, seed, cum, jizz, spunk, gentlemen's relish, and splooge. But however the "tacky, opaque liquid that comes out of the penis" is described, the very act of defining "sperm" and "semen" depends on your point of view. For Lisa Jean Moore, how sperm comes to be known is based on who defines it (a scientist vs. a defense witness, for example), under what social circumstances it is found (a doctor's office vs. a crime scene), and for what purposes it will be used (invitro fertilization vs. DNA analysis). Examining semen historically, medically, and culturally, Sperm Counts is a penetrating exploration of its meaning and power. Using a "follow that sperm" approach, Moore shows how representations of sperm and semen are always in flux, tracing their twisting journeys from male reproductive glands to headline news stories and presidential impeachment trials. Much like the fluid of semen itself can leak onto fabrics and into bodies, its meanings seep into our consciousness over time. Moore's analytic lens yields intriguing observations of how sperm is "spent" and "reabsorbed" as it spurts, swims, and careens through penises, vaginas, test tubes, labs, families, cultures, and politics. Drawn from fifteen years of research, Sperm Counts examines historical and scientific documents, children's "facts of life" books, pornography, the Internet, forensic transcripts and sex worker narratives to explain how semen got so complicated. Among other things, understanding how we produce, represent, deploy and institutionalize semen-biomedically, socially and culturally-provides valuable new perspectives on the changing social position of men and the evolving meanings of masculinity. Ultimately, as Moore reveals, sperm is intimately involved in not only the physical reproduction of males and females, but in how we come to understand ourselves as men and women.
The editors' clinical framework identifies variables that heighten risk for individual, couple, or family dysfunction and describes key processes that foster healing and growth. Chapters by leading authorities reveal how the family response to loss affects all members and their relationships across the life cycle and the generations. New chapters address such topics as spirituality, gender issues, suicide and other traumatic deaths, unacknowledged and stigmatized losses, and resilience-based approaches to family and community recovery from major disaster. In a completely new section, prominent family therapists offer poignant reflections on their own legacies of loss. Throughout Living Beyond Loss, Second Edition, readers will find valuable therapeutic guidelines for working with threatened loss and end-of-life dilemmas, the immediate aftermath of traumatic loss, and long-term complications. Case illustrations address a wide range of loss situations, show their ripple effects, and suggest ways to address hidden losses when other symptoms are presented. Therapists and counselors will find their own lives and practices deeply enriched by this new volume.
Parent Voice provides parents with the motivation and inspiration they need to help their child reach their fullest academic, social and personal potential.
American families today are often noted for their wide variety of guises. Among the mix are single-parent families, childless-by-choice marriages, nuclear families, multigenerational families, and same-sex couples. This diversity among family life that has come under the scrutiny of everyone from politicians to the media, however, is not a recent development of contemporary culture. Although nuclear families with a mother, father, and children tend to be the presumed historic norm, people have always resided, to varying extents, in an assortment of family formations. Bringing together essays by twenty-one distinguished scholars who have helped shape the field of family sociology in the last decade, this interdisciplinary anthology examines variation within family experience, especially as it has evolved across racial, ethnic, social, gender, and generational lines. The essays place historical and institutional frameworks at the center of the discussion. Part one focuses on the development of socially constructed dominant ideologies, demographic shifts in family composition, and historical perspectives on family rituals and mythmaking, including courtship practices and family bonding time. Essays in the second part provide a historical perspective on the interdependence between the family as a social institution and other institutions. Selections highlight changes in women's roles, the impact of economic, racial, and social inequalities on household labor and child care, the effects of war and military service, and the implications of the political climate for family welfare policy. In-depth chapter introductions, along with critical questions to spark class discussion make this an ideal text for courses focusing on family composition, trends, and controversies in the United States.
"With skill and imagination, Rima Apple tracks the evolution of scientific advice to mothers through a prodigious array of sources. The book honors the rich particularity of women's experiences and thoughtfully examines the relationships between mothers and medical experts."--Barbara Melosh, author of Strangers and Kin: The American Way of Adoption "Clearly and comprehensively, Apple demonstrates how mothers have balanced the latest scientific data about childrearing with their basic maternal instincts. Both Apple--and her moms--have done an excellent job "--Barron H. Lerner, M.D., Ph.D., author of The Breast Cancer Wars Parenting today is virtually synonymous with worry. We want to ensure that our children are healthy, that they get a good education, and that they grow up to be able to cope with the challenges of modern life. In our anxiety, we are keenly aware of our inability to know what is best for our children. When should we toilet train? What is the best way to encourage a fussy child to eat? How should we protect our children from disease and injury? Before the nineteenth century, maternal instinct--a mother's natural "know-how"--was considered the only tool necessary for effective childrearing. Over the past two hundred years, however, science has entered the realm of motherhood in increasingly significant ways. In Perfect Motherhood, Rima D. Apple shows how the growing belief that mothers need to be savvy about the latest scientific directives has shifted the role of expert away from the mother and toward the professional establishment. Apple, however, argues that most women today are finding ways to negotiate among the abundance of scientific recommendations, their own knowledge, and the reality of their daily lives. Rima D. Apple is Vilas Life Cycle Professor in the school of human ecology and the women's studies program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
In this ground-breaking book, acclaimed sociologist Ann Oakley undertook one of the first serious sociological studies to examine women's work in the home. She interviewed 40 urban housewives and analysed their perceptions of housework, their feelings of monotony and fragmentation, the length of their working week, the importance of standards and routines, and their attitudes to different household tasks. This classic book challenged the hitherto neglect of housework as a topic worthy of study and paved the way for the sociological study of many more aspects of women's lives.
The ultimate guide to finding your soul mate -- for the smart, sophisticated 35+ womanAre you looking for the right man with whom to spend the rest of your life? Still waiting for "the one" and fed up with dates that go nowhere? Janis Spindel, called a "matchmaker extraordinaire" by the New York Post, has all the advice you need to help you find your perfect match. With more than seven hundred marriages to her credit, Spindel lays out a clear road map for women who are single -- but don't want to be. She explains how to set your priorities, update your look, maximize your dating opportunities, and enter into a lasting and satisfying commitment. Get ready to succeed with helpful questionnaires, sidebars, lively tips, and candid, age-specific advice geared toward women who are already established in their lives and careers.And here's the great news: The marriage of your dreams is within reach! Prepare to laugh, prepare to do some serious thinking, and prepare to find the love of your life with this ultimate guide to unlocking your soul mate's heart -- and your own.
Few of us have been spared the agonies of intimate relationships. They come in many shapes: loving a man or a woman who will not commit to us, being heartbroken when we're abandoned by a lover, engaging in Sisyphean internet searches, coming back lonely from bars, parties, or blind dates, feeling bored in a relationship that is so much less than we had envisaged - these are only some of the ways in which the search for love is a difficult and often painful experience. Despite the widespread and almost collective character of these experiences, our culture insists they are the result of faulty or insufficiently mature psyches. For many, the Freudian idea that the family designs the pattern of an individual's erotic career has been the main explanation for why and how we fail to find or sustain love. Psychoanalysis and popular psychology have succeeded spectacularly in convincing us that individuals bear responsibility for the misery of their romantic and erotic lives. The purpose of this book is to change our way of thinking about what is wrong in modern relationships. The problem is not dysfunctional childhoods or insufficiently self-aware psyches, but rather the institutional forces shaping how we love. The argument of this book is that the modern romantic experience is shaped by a fundamental transformation in the ecology and architecture of romantic choice. The samples from which men and women choose a partner, the modes of evaluating prospective partners, the very importance of choice and autonomy and what people imagine to be the spectrum of their choices: all these aspects of choice have transformed the very core of the will, how we want a partner, the sense of worth bestowed by relationships, and the organization of desire. This book does to love what Marx did to commodities: it shows that it is shaped by social relations and institutions and that it circulates in a marketplace of unequal actors.
Adoption of black children by white families has been known in the UK for over 40 years, and yet the voices of transracially adopted children are rarely heard. This text looks at common themes of identity and belonging, as well as visiting the country of origin and search and reunion with birth relatives.
"One of the best books written about interracial relationships to date. . . . Childs offers a sophisticated and insightful analysis of the social and ideological context of black-white interracial relationships." --Heather Dalmage, author of Tripping on the Color Line "A pioneering project that thoroughly analyzes interracial marriage in contemporary America." --Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, author of Racism without Racists: Color-Blind Racism and The Persistence of Racial Inequality in the United States Is love color-blind, or at least becoming increasingly so? Today's popular rhetoric and evidence of more interracial couples than ever might suggest that it is. But is it the idea of racially mixed relationships that we are growing to accept or is it the reality? What is the actual experience of individuals in these partnerships as they navigate their way through public spheres and intermingle in small, close-knit communities? In Navigating Interracial Borders, Erica Chito Childs explores the social world of black-white interracial couples and examines the ways that collective attitudes shape private relationships. Drawing on personal accounts, in-depth interviews, focus group responses, and cultural analysis of media sources, she provides compelling evidence that sizable opposition still exists toward black-white unions. Disapproval is merely being expressed in more subtle, color-blind terms. Childs reveals that frequently the same individuals who attest in surveys that they approve of interracial dating will also list various reasons why they and their families wouldn't, shouldn't, and couldn't marry someone of another race. Even college students, who are heralded as racially tolerant and open-minded, do not view interracial couples as acceptable when those partnerships move beyond the point of casual dating. Popular films, Internet images, and pornography also continue to reinforce the idea that sexual relations between blacks and whites are deviant. Well-researched, candidly written, and enriched with personal narratives, Navigating Interracial Boundaries offers important new insights into the still fraught racial hierarchies of contemporary society in the United States. Erica Chito Childs is an assistant professor of sociology at Eastern Connecticut State University.
Conversations about multiculturalism rarely consider the position of children, who are presumptively nested in families and communities. Yet providing care for children who are unanchored from their birth families raises questions central to multicultural concerns, as they frequently find themselves moved from communities of origin through adoption or foster care, which deeply affects marginalized communities. This book explores the debate over communal and cultural belonging in three distinct contexts: domestic transracial adoptions of non-American Indian children, the scope of tribal authority over American Indian children, and cultural and communal belonging for transnationally adopted children. Understanding how children belong to families and communities requires hard thinking about the extent to which cultural or communal belonging matters for children and communities, who should have authority to inculcate racial and cultural awareness and under what terms, and, finally, the degree to which children should be expected to adopt and carry forward racial or cultural identities." |
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