C. Wright Mills once said that anyone who writes in a widely intelligible way is liable to be condemned as a “mere literary“ critic or, … Read More
“I’ve been straight and I’ve been gay; gay is better…for me, it is a choice.” These comments made Sex and the City alum Cynthia Nixon … Read More
An interview with Marcy Westerling, a leader in organizing rural communities in the Pacific Northwest. Westerling talks about such topics as her activism, the shifting winds of American populism, and living with a terminal illness. Read More
Six Tastes, by Adam Fagen Most craft beer enthusiasts will tell you that the right beer can enhance your food, complement the seasons, and … Read More
Recent news reports about burger patties are making consumers see red—or at least pink. Last year, Jamie Oliver, a British chef and TV show host, … Read More
By MoneyBlogNewzBrother, can you spare $25? Nicholas Kristof did. In 2007, the New York Times columnist generated buzz when he wrote about his visits … Read More
By North CharlestonAs we get older, the passage of time seems to accelerate. Clinical social worker Linda A. Chernus, writing in Time & Society … Read More
Based on ethnographic research on the male sex industry in China since 2004, sociologist Travis S.K. Kong examines how male rural migrants become male sex workers (or “money boys”) and explains how to make sense of their lives within the context of China’s quest for urbanization, modernization, and globalization. Money boys have found opportunities opened up in new spaces by the development of the market economy, the burgeoning of the sex industry, and the emergence of the gay community in reform China; however, they are struggling in these new spaces of social exclusion, legal constraints, and cultural domination. Read More
Using life stories and observing opera fans in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Claudio E. Benzecry shows how passion for a cultural object develops, gets refined and sustained over time and the consequences this has for personal identity. In addition, Benzecry argues that his observations at the opera house serves as a template to understand other forms of fandom, cultural consumption and passionate behavior more generally. Read More
Based on participant observation and interviews in the Parisian metropolitan region, sociologist Jean Beaman discusses middle-class and upwardly-mobile children of North African immigrants in France, who despite their upward mobility feel just as marginalized as other children of immigrants. Read More