The American Ritual Tapestry
Social Rules and Cultural Meanings
Published on 24. September 1998
Book
Hardback
192 pages
978-0-313-30465-1 (ISBN)
Description
American rituals are vital to the creation and renewal of cultural meanings and rules for social interaction. These rituals are rooted in tradition yet are rapidly changing: a contradiction of hyper-modern society. This phenomenon was first explored by Professor Deegan in her 1989 study American Ritual Dramas. The theory examines both participatory rituals and mass-media rituals to show how everyday people become attached to and alienated from other rituals. Elaborating on the critical dramaturgy theory, the essays in this collection show how patterns can be changed to create a more emancipatory and celebratory society.
The topics covered in the collection include an analysis of Santa Claus, skinheads, hate crimes, and strip dancing, among other topics. Each contributor has participated in these rituals and many examine related cultural artifacts such as music, brochures, and so forth. As the essays show, postmodern theory has gratly underestimated the power and coherence of these events. An important study for scholars and other researchers involved with sociological theory, social psychology, and popular culture.
The topics covered in the collection include an analysis of Santa Claus, skinheads, hate crimes, and strip dancing, among other topics. Each contributor has participated in these rituals and many examine related cultural artifacts such as music, brochures, and so forth. As the essays show, postmodern theory has gratly underestimated the power and coherence of these events. An important study for scholars and other researchers involved with sociological theory, social psychology, and popular culture.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Interest Age: From 7 to 17 years
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 15 mm
Weight
458 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-313-30465-1 (9780313304651)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
09/1998
1st Edition
Praeger Publishers Inc
€65.99
Available for download
Person
MARY JO DEEGAN is Professor of Sociology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Her research interests include theory, methods, women, disability, and the history of sociology. She has published more than 80 articles, chapters, and books, including American Ritual Dramas (Greenwood, 1989) and Women in Sociology (Greenwood, 1991), and coedited With Her in Ourland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (Greenwood, 1997).
Content
Introduction: Weaving the American Ritual Tapestry by Mary Jo Deegan
Racism as a Core Code in American Ritual
White Nationalists' Media-Constructed Rituals: The Interplay of Technology and Core Codes by Todd J. Schroer
Evil and the American Dream by Michael R. Ball
Sexism as a Core Code in American Ritual
The Case of Amateur Stripping: Sex Codes and Egalitarianism in Heterosocial Settings by Thomas C. Calhoun, Rhonda Fisher, and Julie Ann Harms Cannon
There She Is: The Miss America Pageant as American Ritual Drama by Lisa K. Nielson
American Rituals and Globalization
The Americanization of Ritual Culture: The "Core Codes: in American Culture and the Seductive Character of American "Fun" by Mary Jo Deegan
American Ritual Drama in Action: The Disney Theme Park by Yochanan Altman
A "Christmas" Story: An Analysis of the Santa Claus Phenomenon by Sharon K. Larson
American Rituals and the Sacred in Hyper-Modern Society
American Rituals and American Gods by Anthony Blasi
A Sacred Myth in Secular Packaging: Gillan's Journey Through the Witch World by Mary Jo Deegan
Rapidly Changing American Rituals
The Ex-Wife at the Funeral by Agnes Riedmann
Quinceanera: The Mexican-American Initiation Ritual of Young Women by Bert Watters
Bibliography
Index
Racism as a Core Code in American Ritual
White Nationalists' Media-Constructed Rituals: The Interplay of Technology and Core Codes by Todd J. Schroer
Evil and the American Dream by Michael R. Ball
Sexism as a Core Code in American Ritual
The Case of Amateur Stripping: Sex Codes and Egalitarianism in Heterosocial Settings by Thomas C. Calhoun, Rhonda Fisher, and Julie Ann Harms Cannon
There She Is: The Miss America Pageant as American Ritual Drama by Lisa K. Nielson
American Rituals and Globalization
The Americanization of Ritual Culture: The "Core Codes: in American Culture and the Seductive Character of American "Fun" by Mary Jo Deegan
American Ritual Drama in Action: The Disney Theme Park by Yochanan Altman
A "Christmas" Story: An Analysis of the Santa Claus Phenomenon by Sharon K. Larson
American Rituals and the Sacred in Hyper-Modern Society
American Rituals and American Gods by Anthony Blasi
A Sacred Myth in Secular Packaging: Gillan's Journey Through the Witch World by Mary Jo Deegan
Rapidly Changing American Rituals
The Ex-Wife at the Funeral by Agnes Riedmann
Quinceanera: The Mexican-American Initiation Ritual of Young Women by Bert Watters
Bibliography
Index