The meanings of social life : a cultural sociology / by Jeffrey C. Alexander.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Alexander, Jeffrey C.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Sociology.

Prejudices.

Culture.

Violence.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (309 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, c2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Modern men and women go about their lives without really knowing why. Why do we work for such a long time every day? Why are we so obsessed with technology? Why do we continuously construct scandals? Why do we finish one war only to fight another? <br> If we had to explain these things, we would say ""it just makes sense"" or ""it's necessary"" or ""it's what good (or bad) people do"". But when we say that the war against terrorism is necessary and rational we use a rhetoric of good and evil, of friends and enemies, of honor, conscience, loyalty, of civilization and primeval chaos. These rhet

Contents:

Introduction: The meanings of (social) life: on the origins of a cultural sociology

1. The strong program in cultural sociology (with Philip Smith)

2. On the social construction of "moral universals"

3. The "holocaust" from war crime to trauma drama: Cultural trauma and collective idenitity

4. A cultural sociology of evil

5. The discourse of American civil society (with Smith)

6. Watergate as democratic ritual

7. The sacred and profane information machine

8. Modern, anti, post, and neo: how intellectuals explain "our time".

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on metadata supplied by the publisher and other sources.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

0-19-020757-4

0-19-530640-6

0-19-803646-9

0-19-530373-3

1-280-53259-9

OCLC:

58992173