My writing accountability partner recently turned me on to Google Ngram. The search engine lets you you electronically comb through millions of books in Google’s database for certain words or phrases. (You can read about the technical details on Google or Wikipedia.) I searched for the phrase “concealed carry” as a case-insensitive phrase and theContinueContinue reading “Concealed Carry Fun with Google Ngram”
Category Archives: Culture
Read Julie Schumacher’s Dear Committee Members: A Novel
Whether you write letters of recommendation or not – but especially if you write letters of recommendation – read Julie Schumacher’s Dear Committee Members. It is a novel written in the form of letters of recommendation by Jason T. Fitger, Professor of Creative Writing and English at Payne University. Although not a typical narrative, theContinueContinue reading “Read Julie Schumacher’s Dear Committee Members: A Novel”
Official Catholic View of Use of Lethal Force in Self-Defense
Miguel at the Gun Free Zone blog posted recently about a new book by a Texas police officer called Jesus Christ on Killing. I expect to see evangelical Christians taking this position, but Miguel brings to light some interesting passages from the Catechism of the Catholic Church that I had not previously read: The seldomContinueContinue reading “Official Catholic View of Use of Lethal Force in Self-Defense”
Contemporary Application of Bourdieu’s Distinction in Musical Taste
In his famous book Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste, Pierre Bourdieu reports findings from a French survey of cultural tastes fielded in 1967-68. Of particular note is a figure showing the distribution of preferences for three musical works by class fractions. Bourdieu reports that Bach’s “Well-Tempered Clavier” represents “legitimate taste” andContinueContinue reading “Contemporary Application of Bourdieu’s Distinction in Musical Taste”
Sociological Theory Student Survey Updating Bourdieu
OK, Wake Forest Sociological Theory students. You asked for it, you got it. Listen to the following three songs and complete the survey at the bottom of this blog post! http://youtu.be/ViwtNLUqkMY http://youtu.be/IBH97ma9YiI http://youtu.be/MYxAiK6VnXw http://www.wedgies.com/question/534d6951305268020000067f Thanks for participating!!!!
Teaching the Frankfurt School on the Culture Industry and Standardization of Cultural Products
In my sociological theory class recently, I was teaching about critical theory (i.e., “the Frankfurt School”). Specifically, students were reading excerpts from Theodor Adorno’s and Max Horkheimer’s work on “The Culture Industry,” excerpted from their 1944 book The Dialectic of Enlightenment. We talked about how the production of mass cultural commodities (books, films, TV, music)ContinueContinue reading “Teaching the Frankfurt School on the Culture Industry and Standardization of Cultural Products”
Enter to Win a Free Copy of My Book “Becoming Catholic” from Goodreads
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Q&A With My Friend Black Hawk Hancock on His New Theory Book
My friend and I did an on-line Q&A about his new theory text, Social Theory: Continuity and Confrontation. The University of Toronto Press put it on their blog last week. Check it out HERE. I’m looking forward to using the text next spring in my theory classes.
Black Hawk Hancock on Stuart Hall (1932-2014)
My friend Black Hawk Hancock has written a nice obituary for the “Godfather of Cultural Studies,” Stuart Hall, who died yesterday. It is posted on the University of Toronto Press’s blog. The post also calls attention to Hancock’s forthcoming classical and contemporary theory reader, which gives Hall a pride of place. A link toContinueContinue reading “Black Hawk Hancock on Stuart Hall (1932-2014)”
Reflections on Walter Benjamin’s “Unpacking My Library” on the Occasion of Unpacking My Library
I spent my winter break this year packing up my office and moving to a new building. The biggest part of moving offices for me is always packing and unpacking my hundreds of books acquired over the past 25 or so years. Each time I move offices, I read Walter Benjamin’s essay “Unpacking My Library:ContinueContinue reading “Reflections on Walter Benjamin’s “Unpacking My Library” on the Occasion of Unpacking My Library”