The Islamic Middle East is a rare, thought-provoking account of the origins, nature, and evolution of Islam that provides a historical perspective vital to understanding the contemporary Middle East.
This book demonstrates the centrality of sex, gender, and sexuality to theories of human behaviors and practices. Moves beyond other “lesbian and gay studies” readers by presenting a broader view of the significance of studying same-sex cultures and sexualities across cultures. Offers readings from all four subfields of anthropology: cultural, biological, linguistic, and archaeological (along with historical and applied anthropology). Includes discussion of biotechnology and bioethics, health and illness, language, ethnicity, identity, politics, post-colonialism, kinship, development, and policymaking.
After WWII, the United States of America proposed their way of life, based on an unlimited consumption of land, goods, and energy, as a model for the entire world. Nowadays, this expansionist model has reached its limits. This book provides a comprehensive study of the geographical basis of the American settlements, assuming that part of the U.S. overshooting is related to geography because of harsh climates and the continental size of the Nation, but another part is the result of a cultural habits of expansion and segregation. Urban Sprawl, for instance, is the real Achille's heel of America, because it challenges the cultural revolution required by sustainability. From the continental physiography to the New Orleans – Katrina case, this book explores these issues with maps and charts created with the help of a nationwide multiscalar GIS.
A Companion to Media Fandom and Fan Studies offers scholars and fans an accessible and engaging resource for understanding the rapidly expanding field of fan studies. International in scope and written by a team that includes many major scholars, this volume features over thirty especially-commissioned essays on a variety of topics, which together provide an unparalleled overview of this fast-growing field. Separated into five sections—Histories, Genealogies, Methodologies; Fan Practices; Fandom and Cultural Studies; Digital Fandom; and The Future of Fan Studies—the book synthesizes literature surrounding important theories, debates, and issues within the field of fan studies. It also traces and explains the social, historical, political, commercial, ethical, and creative dimensions of fandom and fan studies. Exploring both the historical and the contemporary fan situation, the volume presents fandom and fan studies as models of 21st century production and consumption, and identifies the emergent trends in this unique field of study.
This ABC introduces medicine in areas of conflict or natural disaster responding to the growing number of regions affected. Chapters deal with subjects such as earthquakes and landslides as well as nuclear incidents and biological warfare both nationally and internationally. It covers both logistical planning and medical aid as well as post-conflict recovery, offering psychological as well as medical and public health support. It prepares aid workers for a range of roles in all possible situations.
The Blackwell Companion to Sociology of Religion is presented in three comprehensive parts. Written by a range of outstanding academics, the volume explores the current status of the sociology of religion, and how it might look in future. Explores the current status of the sociology of religion, and how it might look at the beginning of the next millennium. Traces the boundaries between sociology and other closely related disciplines, such as theology and social anthropology. Edited by one of the best known and most widely respected sociologists of religion Accessibly presented in three comprehensive parts.
A thought-provoking examination of death, dying, and the afterlife Prominent scholars present their most recent work about mortuary rituals, grief and mourning, genocide, cyclical processes of life and death, biomedical developments, and the materiality of human corpses in this unique and illuminating book. Interrogating our most common practices surrounding death, the authors ask such questions as: How does the state wrest away control over the dead from bereaved relatives? Why do many mourners refuse to cut their emotional ties to the dead and nurture lasting bonds? Is death a final condition or can human remains acquire agency? The book is a refreshing reassessment of these issues and practices, a source of theoretical inspiration in the study of death. With contributions written by an international team of experts in their fields, A Companion to the Anthropology of Death is presented in six parts and covers such subjects as: Governing the Dead in Guatemala; After Death Communications (ADCs) in North America; Cryonic Suspension in the Secular Age; Blood and Organ Donation in China; The Fragility of Biomedicine; and more. A Companion to the Anthropology of Death is a comprehensive and accessible volume and an ideal resource for senior undergraduate and graduate students in courses such as Anthropology of Death, Medical Anthropology, Anthropology of Violence, Anthropology of the Body, and Political Anthropology. Written by leading international scholars in their fields A comprehensive survey of the most recent empirical research in the anthropology of death A fundamental critique of the early 20th century founding fathers of the anthropology of death Cross-cultural texts from tribal and industrial societies The collection is of interest to anyone concerned with the consequences of the state and massive violence on life and death
A Companion to Gender History surveys the history of women around the world, studies their interaction with men in gendered societies, and looks at the role of gender in shaping human behavior over thousands of years. An extensive survey of the history of women around the world, their interaction with men, and the role of gender in shaping human behavior over thousands of years. Discusses family history, the history of the body and sexuality, and cultural history alongside women’s history and gender history. Considers the importance of class, region, ethnicity, race and religion to the formation of gendered societies. Contains both thematic essays and chronological-geographic essays. Gives due weight to pre-history and the pre-modern era as well as to the modern era. Written by scholars from across the English-speaking world and scholars for whom English is not their first language.
A Companion to African-American Studies is an exciting and comprehensive re-appraisal of the history and future of African American studies. Contains original essays by expert contributors in the field of African-American Studies Creates a groundbreaking re-appraisal of the history and future of the field Includes a series of reflections from those who established African American Studies as a bona fide academic discipline Captures the dynamic interaction of African American Studies with other fields of inquiry.
The Blackwell Companion to Social Inequalities is a first-rate collection of social science scholarship on inequalities, emphasizing race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, age, and nationality. Highlights themes that represent the scope and range of theoretical orientations, contemporary emphases, and emerging topics in the field of social inequalities. Gives special attention to debates in the field, developing trends and directions, and interdisciplinary influences in the study of social inequalities. Includes an editorial introduction and suggestions for further reading.