This fascinating book explores the interface between global processes, identity formation and the production of culture. Examining ideas ranging from world systems theory to postmodernism, Jonathan Friedman investigates the relations between the global and the local, to show how cultural fragmentation and modernist homogenization are equally constitutive trends of global reality. With examples taken from a rich variety of theoretical sources, ethnographic accounts of historical eras, the analysis ranges across the cultural formations of ancient Greece, contemporary processes of Hawaiian cultural identification and Congolese beauty cults. Throughout, the author examines the interdependency of world market and local cultural transformations, and demonstrates the complex interrelations between globally structured social processes and the organization of identity. Jonathan Friedman also documents the development and significance of a global perspective in an anthropology that illuminates a wide variety of domains from prehistory to world hegemony. In so doing, he interrogates the emergence of the concept of culture and suggests that anthropology itself is best understood within the trajectory of modernity.

This fascinating book explores the interface between global processes, identity formation and the production of culture. Examining ideas ranging from world systems theory to postmodernism, Jonathan Friedman investigates the relations between the global and the local, to show how cultural fragmentation and modernist homogenization are equally constitutive trends of global reality. With examples taken from a rich variety of theoretical sources, ethnographic accounts of historical eras, the analysis ranges across the cultural formations of ancient Greece, contemporary processes of Hawaiian cultural identification and Congolese beauty cults. Throughout, the author examines the interdependency of world market and local cultural

Our interactive world can take a creative product, such as a Hollywood film, Bollywood song, or Latin American telenovela, and transform it into a source of cultural anxiety. What does this artwork say about the artist or the world she works in? How will these artworks evolve in the global market? Film, music, television, and the performing arts enter the same networks of exchange as other industries, and the anxiety they produce informs a fascinating area of study for art, culture, and global politics. Focusing on the confrontation between global politics and symbolic creative expression, J. P. Singh shows how, by integrating themselves into international markets, entertainment industries give rise to far-reaching cultural anxieties and politics. With examples from Hollywood, Bollywood, French grand opera, Latin American television, West African music, postcolonial literature, and even the Thai sex trade, Singh cites not only the attempt to address cultural discomfort but also the effort to deny entertainment acts as cultural. He connects creative expression to clashes between national identities, and he details the effect of cultural policies, such as institutional patronage and economic incentives, on the making and incorporation of art into the global market. Ultimately, Singh shows how these issues affect the debates on cultural trade being waged by the World Trade Organization, UNESCO, and the developing world.

A compendium of over 50 scholarly works on discourse behavior in digital communication.

Does the West impose its own definition of human rights and democracy on the rest of the world? Does globalization threaten British, French or other European iedntities? Is African culture compatible with multi-party politics? This text aims to answer these and other questions.

The Handbook of Media and Mass Communication Theory presents a comprehensive collection of original essays that focus on all aspects of current and classic theories and practices relating to media and mass communication. Focuses on all aspects of current and classic theories and practices relating to media and mass communication Includes essays from a variety of global contexts, from Asia and the Middle East to the Americas Gives niche theories new life in several essays that use them to illuminate their application in specific contexts Features coverage of a wide variety of theoretical perspectives Pays close attention to the use of theory in understanding new communication contexts, such as social media 2 Volumes

Cultural Identity In Transition Analyses The Challenges That Globalisation And Modernisation Have Brought To Cultural Identity In Recent Years. This Collection Of Articles Highlights Some Of The Central Theoretical Ideas And Models Currently Used In The Analysis Of Cultural Identity In The Social And Cultural Sciences.While The Book S Main Regional Focus Is On Northern Europe, This Is Complemented By Several Case Studies Addressing Issues Of Cultural Identity In Indigenous And Ethnic Communities, In Literary And Artistic Expression, And In Terms Of National Politics Around The World.The Book Discusses In Detail The Questions Like : What Is At Stake In The Global Culture Industry In Terms Of Cultural Identity? How Do The Internet And Information Technology In General Empower Local Communities? What Kinds Of Political Struggles And Conflicts Can Be Associated With The Processes Of Cultural Identity? Cultural Identities Are In Transition, But In What Direction Are They Moving?Cultural Identity In Transition Will Be Essential Reading For University Students And Researchers In Sociology, Anthropology, And Cultural And Literary Studies.