Varieties of Urban Experience: The American City and the Practice of Culture (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780761833871)

Cities play an important role in contemporary American culture as sites of commerce, trade, entertainment, and the arts. We can learn a lot about what Americans believe and how they act upon those beliefs by looking at the ways our cultural dramas are continually played out on the city's stage. The complexity and sheer variety of urban experiences can be overwhelming. In clear prose, the essays in this volume decipher some of these experiences and offer fresh analytical insights. Without relying on one theoretical, disciplinary, or ideological framework, the contributors collectively explore the city as an identity marker, an artist's muse, a cultural hybrid, and a place many call home. Issues related to gender, race, ethnicity, religion, and power are present in American cities and are therefore present within this collection. Most importantly, these essays acknowledge the hard work required to keep something as large and complex as a city running. The authors show how people practice culture and the ways that culture is expressed through myths, rituals, images, and places.

Author: Lyn H. Lofland
ISBN-10: 0761833870
ISBN-13: 9780761833871
Publisher: University Press of America
Language: English
Published: 04/06/2006
Pages: 212
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.70lbs
Size: 8.80h x 5.90w x 0.30d

Review Citation(s):
Reference and Research Bk News 08/01/2006 pg. 175