Keywords
A Vocabulary of Culture and Society
Published on 25. February 1988
Book
Paperback/Softback
350 pages
978-0-00-686150-8 (ISBN)
Description
Raymond Williams' seminal exploration of the history of meaning of some of the most important words in the English language.
First published in 1976, and expanded in 1983, KEYWORDS reveals how the meanings of 131 words - including 'art', 'class', 'family', 'media', 'sex' and 'tradition' - were formed and subsequently altered and redefined as the historical contexts in which they were used changed.
Neither a defining dictionary or glossary, KEYWORDS is rather a brilliant investigation into how the meanings of some of the most important words in the English language have shifted over time, and the forces that brought about those shifts.
First published in 1976, and expanded in 1983, KEYWORDS reveals how the meanings of 131 words - including 'art', 'class', 'family', 'media', 'sex' and 'tradition' - were formed and subsequently altered and redefined as the historical contexts in which they were used changed.
Neither a defining dictionary or glossary, KEYWORDS is rather a brilliant investigation into how the meanings of some of the most important words in the English language have shifted over time, and the forces that brought about those shifts.
Reviews / Votes
'A revelatory unpacking of the complicated disputes that lay - dormant, as it were - within familiar words' Guardian'Williams's essential point about the social and political stakes in simple words and phrases is as true today as it was in the 1970s: think of the many battles that have erupted around terms like "liberal," "torture," "pro-life" or "intelligent design"' New York Times
'This book is an erudite, elegant, and awful warning to anybody tempted to lay down the lexicographical law, in order to apply one authoritative fixed sense to a highly variable and controversial value word' The Times
'Keywords is useful and stimulating to all who work with words or merely love them' Wall Street Journal
'The book's greatest value, perhaps, is its exemplification of how all of us should respond to the words we hear and use: with surprise, distrust, curiosity, and unflagging vigilance' Yale Review
'An invaluable book ... A unique coda to the words of one of our most original and provocative thinkers' Harpers
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers
Target group
College/higher education
Adult education
Product notice
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
253 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-00-686150-8 (9780006861508)
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
02/2013
1st Edition
HarperPress
€8.99
Available for download
Person
An academic, and the writer of both non-fiction and fiction, Raymond Williams (1921-88) was one of the most important and influential British thinkers of the twentieth century. Williams wrote about politics, culture, mass media and literature, and his work was key to the development of cultural studies. His best-known books include 'Culture and Society', 'The Long Revolution' and 'The Country and the City'.