`This groundbreaking study will interest those committed to keeping abreast of current social theory. The case studies are good too!' - Choice`Rob Shields' coverage of the theoretical debates is right up to date and the four case studies provide a fascinating application and illumination of the issues which he is addressing.' - Peter Saunders, Sussex University`Shields offers us an imaginative critique of the existing literature, a vast bibliography, and four beautifully crafted case studies which begin at last to explore empirically that most difficult of theoretical terrains, the reciprocal relations between the social and the spatial.' - Environment and Planning`What separates Shield's work from much of the other recent work in this field is exactly what he aimed to achieve - its emphasis on the importance of space in the development and formation of perceptions, myths and collective representations.' - Urban Studies

• Part One: Introduction, Places on the Margin, 1. Margin and Periphery, 2. Early Approaches: A Review in the Form of Critique 3. Synopsis: Chapter One: Alternative Geographies of Modernity, 1. Social Spatialisation, i. Bourdieu's Habitus, ii. Foucault, 2. The Social Construction of the Spatial, iii. Realist Visions, iv. Lefebvre, 3. Social Spatialisations and the `Sense of Place': Part Two: Chapter Two: Ritual Pleasures of a Seaside Resort, Chapter Three: Niagara Falls: Honeymoon Capital of the World, Chapter Four: The True North Strong and Free, Chapter Five: The North-South Divide in England: Part Three: Chapter Six: Synthesis and Implications, Bibliography