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Before they were largely decimated and dispersed by the effects of European colonization, Arawak-speaking peoples were the most widespread language family in Latin America and the Caribbean, and they were the first people Columbus encountered in the Americas. "Comparative Arawakan Histories", in paperback for the first time, examines social structures, political hierarchies, rituals, religious movements, gender relations, and linguistic variations through historical perspectives to document sociocultural diversity across the diffused Arawakan diaspora. ... Read more

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This innovative study opens up a new area in sociological and urban studies: the aural experience of the social, mediated through mobile technologies of communication.

Whilst we live in a world dominated by visual epistemologies of urban experience, Michael Bull argues that it is not surprising that the Apple iPod, a sound based technology, is the first consumer cultural icon of the twenty-first century. This book, in using the example of the Apple iPod, investigates the way in which we use sound to construct key areas of our daily lives. The author argues that the Apple iPod acts as an urban Sherpa for many of its users and in doing so joins the mobile army of technologies that many of us habitually use to accompany our daily lives.

Through our use of such mobile and largely sound based devices, the book demonstrates how and why the spaces of the city are being transformed right in front of our ears.

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In this absorbing story of the changing life of a community, the authors of Deaf in America reveal historical events and forces that have shaped the ways that Deaf people define themselves today.Inside Deaf Culture relates Deaf people's search for a voice of their own, and their proud self-discovery and self-description as a flourishing culture.

Padden and Humphries show how the nineteenth-century schools for the deaf, with their denigration of sign language and their insistence on oralist teaching, shaped the lives of Deaf people for generations to come.They describe how Deaf culture and art thrived in mid-twentieth century Deaf clubs and Deaf theatre, and profile controversial contemporary technologies.

Most triumphant is the story of the survival of the rich and complex language American Sign Language, long misunderstood but finally recently recognized by a hearing world that could not conceive of language in a form other than speech.In a moving conclusion, the authors describe their own very different pathways into the Deaf community, and reveal the confidence and anxiety of the people of this tenuous community as it faces the future.

Inside Deaf Culture celebrates the experience of a minority culture--its common past, present debates, and promise for the future.From these pages emerge clear and bold voices, speaking out from inside this once silenced community.

Customer Reviews (16)

Inside Deaf Culture
Very informative. This is an interesting book. I purchased it for a final paper in college. I only gave it 4 stars because it seemed to me that there were parts where it was dragging. I recommend it because it has a good amount of info.

Excellent Service
Book came in condition stated. Arrived within only a few days with ground shipping and packaged well.

In Great Condition
The only problem I had with this book is the poor tracking/shipping. The tracking told me that the item shipped out from OH on the 17th and that was it. I had to go to USPS to get more info, which only told me that from the 17th-25th the product had only moved to another section of OH. It did get to me in time and the book is in great condition. The tracking and slightly more fast shipping would have been appreciated.

Is a good read, but...
...not what I expected. The first half is pretty much a huge history lesson on the delevopment of Deaf schools & ASL, and although it was interesting at parts it seemed to drag for awhile. Then it gets more into current issues in Deaf culture but still dabbles in the history at times.

I would not say that the book is "bad" at all. It's just I was expecting more scenerios concerning: behaviors, Deaf opinions on hearing, changes in technology/communication, etc. I too believe it is a necessary read for those hearing who want to learn ASL. It helps you appreciate the culture much more and helps you to not look at Deaf people as handicapped.

A good book about Black deaf culture within a deaf subculture
This book offers a good introduction about the African American deaf community that exists as a miniority within a Deaf minority in America. If you are looking for a overview of the Deaf Culture then this is a good foundation book. The only downside about the book is that some of the chapers seem to be a mirror of previous chapters only about a different geographical Deaf community. However, given the limited number of resources about Deaf culture it is definitely worth reading.
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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Consensus is defined in English as, firstly, generalagreement and, secondly, group solidarity of belief orsentiment. It has its origin in a Latin word meaningliterally to feel together.The formal process of achievingconsensus ideally requires serious treatment of theconsidered opinion of each group member: those advocatingthe adoption, say, of a particular course of action,genuinely wish to hear those who may be against theproposal, since discussion, it is supposed, can only enhanceultimate consensus. The hope is that in such circumstancesaction, or the adoption of group opinion, without resolutionof dissent will be rare. A consensus rather than a votingprocess is often employed with this intention, as well as tominimize any possible damage to inter-personalrelationships. ... Read more

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The Macedonians ? also referred to as Macedonian Slavs ? are a South Slavic people who are primarily associated with the Republic of Macedonia. They speak the Macedonian language, a South Slavic language. About two thirds of all ethnic Macedonians live in the Republic of Macedonia, although there are also communities in a number of other countries. ... Read more

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The Mirandese languageis a Romance language belonging to the Astur-Leonese linguistic group, sparsely spoken in a small area of northeastern Portugal, in the municipalities of Miranda do Douro, Mogadouro and Vimioso. The Portuguese Parliament granted it co-official recognition for local matters on 17 September 1998 with the law 7/99 of 29 January 1999. Mirandese has a distinct phonology, morphology and syntax, and has been distinct at least since the formation of Portugal. It has its roots in the spoken Latin of the north of the Iberian Peninsula . It is a descendant of the ancient Astur-Leonese language of northern Iberia, the last remnant of the ancient language of the Kingdom of León, and closely related to modern the Astur-Leonese languages in Spain. However, these amalgamations in the Spanish territory did not affect Mirandese, which preserves distinct linguistic differences in relation to both Portuguese and Spanish. It shares a great deal of lexicon with regional Portuguese dialects. ... Read more

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Mandé or Manden refers to a large group of related ethnicgroups in West Africa who speak any one of the many Mandelanguages spread throughout the region. Various Mandégroups are found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire,Chad, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali,Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone.Linguistically, the Mandé languages belong to a divergentbranch of the Niger-Congo family, and are divided into twoprimary groups; East Mandé and West Mandé. The Mandinkapeople, a branch of the Mandé, are credited with thefounding of the largest ancient West African empires. Otherlarger groups include the Malinké, Bambara and Dyula.Smaller, lesser known groups of Mandé peoples include theLigbi, Vai and Bissa. Mande peoples inhabit variousenvironments, from coastal rainforests to the sparse Saheland Sahara, and as such have a wide range of cultures andbeliefs. Most profess Islamic belief, but this rangesbetween orthodox Sunni Islam to cultural Islam with manyaspects of traditional religions practised. ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Philippine islands are inhabited by a number of different ethnic groups. The majority of the population is composed of ethno-linguistic groups whose languages are Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) in origin, that converted to Christianity, and adopted European, and American culture. These ethnic groups include the Ilocano, Pangasinense, Kapampangan, Tagalog, Bicolano, and Visayan. In Mindanao, there are people who practice Islam. The Spanish called them Moros after the Moors. In the province of Bukidnon there is an ethnic group of mountain dwelling people called Binukid who speak the Binukid language. However these individuals do not practice Islam. The Negrito are a pre-Mongoloid people that migrated from mainland Asia, were the first human beings to settle the Philippines around 30,000 years ago. The Negrito population are estimated to be numbering around 30,000 in the Philippine population. The tribal groups of the Philippines include the Ati, Igorot, and the T'boli. Their ways of life remains free from Western, and Islamic influence. ... Read more

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Slavic peoples, Proto-Slavic language, Early Slavs, genetic history of Europe, South Slavs, East Slavs, Ethnic groups in Europe, Grad (Slavic settlement), Lech ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Ethnocentrism is the tendency to believe that one's ethnicor cultural group is centrally important, and that all othergroups are measured in relation to one's own. Theethnocentric individual will judge other groups relative totheir own particular ethnic group or culture, especiallywith concern to language, behavior, customs, and religion.These ethnic distinctions and sub-divisions serve to defineeach ethnicity's unique cultural identity.The termethnocentrism was coined by William G. Sumner, uponobserving the tendency for people to differentiate betweenthe ingroup and others. He described it as often leading topride, vanity, beliefs of one own group's superiority, andcontempt of outsiders.Anthropologists such as Franz Boas andBronis?aw Malinowski argued that any human science had totranscend the ethnocentrism of the scientist. ... Read more

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Language policy is a tool for regulating the statusof languages and allocating benefits and resources insociety for language groups. Thus, language policyhas both an instrumental and symbolic value for theethnic groups and is a source of conflict betweenlanguage groups and the state in many countries. This study aims to analyze the perceptions andpositions of two groups in Turkey, Kurds andCircassians, regarding language rights. The data forthe analysis was obtained out of the texts that arepublished by some groups in these communities, andinterviews with the representatives of these groups. Overall, language policy is percieved as a matter ofrecognition by the Kurdish groups, while for theCircassians the primary problem is to increaselanguage use of the community and to develop thelanguage. Therefore, while Kurdish groups demandtheir language to be treated equally in status withthe Turkish language, the Circassian groups demandsupport for the education and development of thelanguage. In order to accomodate the needs andinterests of each particular language group, languagepolicies should take these differences intoconsideration. ... Read more

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This volume concerns the longstanding intellectual puzzle of how individuals overcome their biological, neural, and mental finitude to achieve sociality. It explores how humans take each other into account, coordinate their actions, and are able to share their inner states and to communicate.

Sophisticated views on the bases of sociality are detailed at the level of neural mechanisms, perception and memory, motivation, communication and dialog, culture, and evolution. These insights have been inspired by major strides and exciting new developments in disciplines as far afield as ethology, evolutionary ecology, neuroscience, cognition, memory, developmental and social psychology, psycholinguistics, philosophy, robotics, and sociology. The volume is the first to bridge these disciplinary boundaries to lay the foundations for an integrated and general conceptualization of the bases of sociality and its implications for psychology. Each contribution presents different levels of the grounding of sociality and will further stimulate novel approaches to linking different layers of sociality, from the neural to the cultural level.

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Customer Reviews (1)

Miller resurrects the forgotten importance of commonplace
Miller looks at commonplace books as sites of identity construction and gender formation. Miller recognizes their pedagogical value as both a mneumotechnical tool as well as a vehicle for enlightenment throughself-reflexivity and critical thinking. Miller suggests through this 300+page book many interesting concepts invlovling researching outside thecanon in order to locate sources of identity and cultural stimulus. Also,according to Miller,commonplace books contain important historicalinformation. For a more detailed report email me. ... Read more

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In 1993, the author set out to try and gain some understanding about school and community in Havens, New Mexico--a place where she had the opportunity to be immersed in border culture, where she could learn how the border figured into everyday life, and where she could pay uninterrupted attention to the issues as they occurred in the personal and professional lives of those who taught in and administered the schools--and in the lives of the students who studied there. This book offers an interpretation that is disciplined by the long hours, days, and months spent in Havens, and by the personal stance the author brings to the study of a place and its people.

This book tells the story of Havens from the perspective of what it is, of the present in all of its complexity, and as a window on what might exist in the future in this border community. It begins with a description of Havens and its inevitable interdependence with its Mexican neighbors, followed by an introduction of three "cultural mediators"--two students and one teacher from Havens High School. Focusing on the relationship between the use of Spanish and English, the language landscape in the community and in the schools is laid out. This is followed by a specific description of the development of bilingual education programs in the district, and an introduction of the social structure of the high school, describing the students' interactions across cultural lines. The final chapter presents an alternative metaphor for thinking about the border and identifies markers of opportunity that already exist in Havens as it works toward defining what it means to be a bicultural and binational community.
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Selina Boyce and Holden Caulfield are the hero and the heroine of this thesis. The two adolescents come from different backgrounds, different families and even from different ethnicities. The things they have in common, though, are not less significant: they both live in New York and they both have to struggle with the problems of adolescence. In their phase of physical and mental growth these adolescents are going through various stages of dealing with the influence of their new level they enter after their innocent lives as children. Experience versus innocence is what makes the phase of adolescence so confusing and the adults-to-be need to find ways of getting through and over these crises. This is the point of separation for our two heroes. This is the point where the difference between black and white comes in. ... Read more

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Focusing on related works and relevant documentary and literary evidence, this book uncovers the layers of accrued thinking about cities over time. Uncovered also is the way in which these Renaissance maps reflect the transformation from a cartography based on sacred, mythological and historical events to one determined by topography, new visualization of spatial relationships, and new modes of design. Throughout, the reader is invited to appreciate the importance of maps for understanding urban civilization. The author further celebrates maps as works of art which serve not only practical needs, but function as emblems of civic humanism. ... Read more

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An introduction to literature and also a text for courses in composition, multicultural, or contemporary American literature.

Contemporary, Cross-Cultural, American Writing. With 28 stories, 30 essays and autobiographical narratives, 90 poems , and 6 plays, New Worlds of Literature, Second Edition, Brings together vibrant new Writing that reflects the diverse ethnic, cultural, and social worlds of North America and the Caribbean today. Among the many writers new to the Second Edition are Julia Alvarez, Sandra Cisneros, Judith Ortiz Cofer, Tato Laviera, David Leavitt, Derek Walcott, and John  Edgar Wideman.

A Strengthened Connection between Reading and Writing. Nine student papers, a new section on writing about literature, an abundance of writing topics and study questions, thematic chapter introductions, and Afterwords on the elements of literature together guide students toward careful reading and thoughtful writing.

Instructor's Guide This handy guide, by Carolina Hospital, Miami-Dade Community College, and Carlos Medina, includes suggestions for activities and writing topics, discussions of each selection in the text, teaching strategies, and sample syllabi. Available to instructors upon request.

Voices of New Worlds Video This video of three writers reading from their work—Agha Shahid Ali, Judith Ortiz Cofer, and Alberto Alvaro Ríos—brings the selections in New Worlds of Literature, Second Edition, to life in your classroom. Available upon adoption.

Customer Reviews (2)

Outstanding Contemporary Literature Book
What I like about this book is the diversity it offers in terms of the authors published in the book.It is very much appreciated reading about contemporary authors who are Native-Americans, African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Asian-Americans, and the like.Their views and writings certainly have added a diverse perspective to the world of literature. The poems, short stories, essays, and fictional drama pieces in the book open a new dimension and perspective in literature.The writings are refreshing and stimulating.They are closely related to reality and allow the imaginative spirit to expand and create specific imagery to go with selected pieces in the book.The instructive portion of the text is wonderful.Each chapter starts with an introduction and insight of what is to come.It breaks down the reading in such a way that the understanding is clear and unambiguous.The variety of exercises following each chapter allows for new perspectives, discussions, visions, and interpretations.This is an excellent book to read.Other excellent books to read are:"Trilogy Moments for the Mind, Body and Soul" with the new Epulaeryu poetry form; "The Language of Poetry Forms" by Tree Good; and, "Everyday Miracles" by Margaret Okubo.

Literature from America's many ethnic groups
I have used this book for several years as a text in Composition classes. I even used it in writing classes in Africa. It's a "multicultural" text. The wonderful choices (fiction, nonfiction,poetry, drama) show that no matter who you are, you can use the powerfultool of the English language to write about your own experiences. Seemsobvious, but perhaps not. Great writing suggestions, too, just about aperfect book. It's too expensive, of course. But in the end, worth it. Iwish they'd come out with a third edition! ... Read more

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A Great Books Foundation anthology for book discussiongroups, including questions for discussion. Since 1947, thepublications and shared inquiry method of the Great Books Foundationhave helped people around the world organize and maintain thrivingbook discussion groups. Over the years, countless people have attestedthat the intellectual exchange fostered by their Great Books groupshas been one of the most meaningful experiences of their lives. Thisis one of nine volumes in the Great Books Foundation's 50thAnniversary Series, inaugurating the next half-century of thoughtfuldiscussion about outstanding works for literature. Each volumeconsists of short works by classic and modern authors from around theworld, and includes prose, poetry, and discussion questions for eachselection as well as questions for two novels recommended for bookdiscussion groups. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Clashes of Culture
Who would have expected this from the Great Books Foundation? It's a surprisingly eclectic, contemporary anthology of anthropology, fiction, and poetry worth reading and discussing with a book group. Questions areincluded for two novels that are NOT printed in this book. ... Read more

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Molly Swets examines the growing global threat of fundamentalists who use religion as a political tool to gain control. Using Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaid's Tale" which satirizes the 1980s movement by the US Christian New Right that called for women to return to the home andspeculates the disastrous results for women if this call were taken to an extreme Swets comparesAtwood's fictional theocratic society with contemporary fundamentalist organizations to reveal startling similarities in the methods used to oppress women: confining them to domestic and reproductive duties creating a strict dress code and restricting access to education and to the interpretation of sacred texts. Swets then exposes women's culpability in supporting fundamentalist groups in order to gain some power and control in a chaotic environment. Through her research Swets approaches Atwood's novel as social prophesy and as an indictment of any group that uses religion as a tool to control and oppress women." ... Read more