Books by "John R. Burch, Jr."
8 books found
Although postmodernism has had clear impact on literary criticism, the social and political implications of this philosophy have not been systematically investigated. Murphy's study is the first to bring a broad interdisciplinary perspective to the subject and to present postmodernism as a coherent social theory. Responding with compelling arguments to critics of postmodernism, Murphy develops a model that offers a viable alternative to traditional approaches to conceptualizing and studying social life. In an introductory chapter, Murphy looks at the differences between modernism and postmodernism and discusses the metanarratives that characterize the former. He goes on to clarify key assumptions and concepts, especially the postmodern opposition to the traditional Western separation of subject and object. In subsequent chapters, he describes the research methodology used by postmodernists, their views of social ontology and the relationship between order and structure, and the creation of socially responsible institutions. The postmodernists' reconceptualization of key aspects of cultural reality, including time, space, reason, and social relations, is examined in detail. Murphy concludes by exploring the political ramifications of the postmodernist model and its potential as a vehicle for building a genuinely democractic society. This study will be of particular interest to philosophers, economists, and sociologists concerned with contemporary developments in European social philosophy. It is relevant to courses or study in social theory and philosophy, communication theory, cultural criticism, and related fields.
A highly regarded text on the intersection of mass media and sports. First published 1987; this edition with new foreword 2013. This book is a brief introductory inquiry that, in the early chapters, provides a broad historical overview of the development since the early nineteenth century of modern spectator sports and mass communications - each of which began as distinctive and emerging forms of leisure and popular entertainment. In subsequent chapters the book proceeds to examine their progressively intertwined and, by the middle of the 20th century, increasingly symbiotic relationship (described as 'a match made in heaven'); a strategic and financially attractive alliance that ultimately proved irresistible to both parties with the emergence and global spread of broadcast television services.
"Argues that the habit of thinking of the city and the country as opposites is at the root of our environmental and political disorder, and suggests approaches to bridge this social, political, and ecological divide"--
This study represents the first scholarly attempt to consider the difficult allocation problems associated with management of natural resources and proposed changes in the natural environment. Originally published in 1973