Understanding material culture
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Understanding material culture
Sage Publications, 2007
- : pbk
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Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
"In his interdisciplinary review of material culture, Ian Woodward goes beyond synthesis to offer a theoretically innovative reconstruction of the field. It is filled with gems of conceptual insight and empirical discovery. A wonderful book."
- Jeffrey C. Alexander, Yale University
"A well-grounded and accessible survey of the burgeoning field of material culture studies for students in sociology and consumption studies. While situating the field within the history of intellectual thought in the broader social sciences, it offers detailed and accessible case studies. These are supplemented by very useful directions for further in-depth reading, making it an excellent undergraduate course companion."
- Victor Buchli, University College London
Why are i-pods and mobile phones fashion accessories? Why do people spend thousands remodelling their perfectly functional kitchen? Why do people crave shoes or handbags? Is our desire for objects unhealthy, or irrational?
Objects have an inescapable hold over us, not just in consumer culture but increasingly in the disciplines that study social relations too. This book offers a systematic overview of the diverse ways of studying the material as culture. Surveying the field of material culture studies through an examination and synthesis of classical and contemporary scholarship on objects, commodities, consumption, and symbolization, this book:
introduces the key concepts and approaches in the study of objects and their meanings
presents the full sweep of core theory - from Marxist and critical approaches to structuralism and semiotics
shows how and why people use objects to perform identity, achieve social status, and narrativize life experiences
analyzes everyday domains in which objects are important
shows why studying material culture is necessary for understanding the social.
This book will be essential reading for students and researchers in sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, consumer behaviour studies, design and fashion studies.
Table of Contents
PART ONE: LOCATING MATERIAL CULTURE
The Material as Culture. Definitions, Perspectives, Approaches
Studying Material Culture. Origins and Premises
PART TWO: THEORETICAL APPROACHES TO STUDYING MATERIAL CULTURE
The Deceptive, Suspicious Object. Marxist and Critical Approaches
The Object as Symbolic Code. Structural and Semiotic Approaches
The Material Representing the Cultural Universe. Objects, Symbols and Cultural Categories
PART THREE: OBJECTS IN ACTION
Objects and Distinction. The Aesthetic Field and Expressive Materiality
Material Culture and Identity. Objects and the Self
Material Culture, Narratives, and Social Performance. Objects in Contexts
PART FOUR: CONCLUSION
Conclusion:
Objects and Meaning in Consumer Culture
by "Nielsen BookData"
