| Landscapes of Abandonment: Capitalism, Modernity, and Estrangement Contributor(s): Salerno, Roger A. (Author) |
|
 |
ISBN: 0791458458 ISBN-13: 9780791458457 Publisher: State University of New York Press OUR PRICE: $90.25 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: October 2003 Annotation: Argues that the modern West's pervasive sense of abandonment is a side effect of capitalism. Using social theory and cultural analysis, Roger Salerno explores the relationship of abandonment to the construction of contemporary capitalistic cultures. Beginning with an array of narratives on the emergence of capitalism in the West and its undermining of traditional social institutions and structures, he provides an overview of both the definition of and reactions to abandonment, analyzing its historical, social, and psychological dimensions. The author contends that abandonment anxiety and feelings of estrangement not only have deep psychological roots, but also important social causes and cultural manifestations such as a quest for security or a hunger for commodities. Salerno surveys important contributions of writers, artists, philosophers, and social scientists and how their work expresses this sense of modern abandonment. He also examines how and why this phenomenon has become a central motif in renderings of community, the environment, and the process of globalization and presents a richer understanding of our modern social condition. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Social Science | Sociology - General |
| Dewey: 302.544 |
| LCCN: 2002042636 |
| Series: Suny the Sociology of Culture |
| Physical Information: 0.82" H x 6.02" W x 9.5" (1.07 lbs) 280 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Using social theory and cultural analysis, Roger A. Salerno explores the relationship of abandonment to the construction of contemporary capitalistic cultures. Beginning with an array of narratives on the emergence of capitalism in the West and its undermining of traditional social institutions and structures, he provides an overview of both the definition of and reactions to abandonment, analyzing its historical, social, and psychological dimensions. The author contends that abandonment anxiety and feelings of estrangement not only have deep psychological roots, but also important social causes and cultural manifestations such as a quest for security or a hunger for commodities. Salerno surveys important contributions of writers, artists, philosophers, and social scientists and how their work expresses this sense of modern abandonment. He also examines how and why this phenomenon has become a central motif in renderings of community, the environment, and the process of globalization and presents a richer understanding of our modern social condition. |