Chris Rojek – författare

A collection of critical essays which reject the assumptions that leisure relations are relations of freedom, self determination, life satisfaction and growth. The essays look at power and policy issues in leisure relations and attempt to produce a critical sociology of the subject. The first part deals with theoretical perspectives on leisure, associated with the conventional wisdom and neo-Marxism, Elias, Freud, Simmel and bourgeois thought. The second considers issues of power and planning in leisure practice. It consists of essays on leisure policy, women's leisure, the informal economy, drug use and struggles over leisure time and space.

How do figurational sociologists approach the subjects of sport and leisure? How does their approach differ from other approaches in the field?.;This collection offers an introduction to the figurational sociology of sport and leisure. The features of the approach are explained and contriburors show how figurational sociology is applied in the analysis of concrete problems. However, the collection also gives space to critics of the figurational approach. Included here are contributions which claim that the approach is inaccruate, blinkered and irrelevant. The book ends with a commentary by Eric Dunning on the strengths of figurational sociology in comparison with other approaches in the field.

If cultural theory is a minefield, this book is a route map through that field. Prepared by an international team of scholars, the entries in this book provide accessible introductions to the key cultural theorists of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Over 200 of the leading figures in the study of culture are listed, together with their key concepts and main arguments, their major works and formative influences. An extensive introduction sets the entries in the appropriate intellectual and historical contexts, and each entry provides links to other seminal figures in the study of culture. as well as a guide to further reading. The dictionary covers a wide spectrum of theorists from fields such as philosophy, economics, sociology, literary criticism, linguistics, psychology and other disciplines from the humanities and social sciences.

Social Work and Received Ideas examines the language of both traditional and radical social work as forms of power, arguing that the will to help and care for people unintentionally results in new types of dependency, control and domination.

Without doubt, Jean Baudrillard is one of the most important figures currently working in the area of sociology an dcultural studies, but his writings infuriate as many people as they intoxcicate. This collection provides a wide-ranging, measured assessment of Baudrillard's work. The contributors examine Baudrillard's relation to consumption, modernity, postmodernity, social theory, feminism, politics and culture. They attempt to steer a clear course between the hype which Baudrillard himself has done much to generate, and the solid value of his startling thoughts. Baudrillard's ideas and style of expression provide a challenge to established academic ways of proceeding and thinking. The book explores this challenge and speculates on the reason for the extreme responses to Baudrillard's work. The appeal of Baudrillard's arguments is clearly discussed and his place in contemporary social theory is shrewdly assessed. Baudrillard emerges as a chameleon figure, but one who is obsessed with the central themes of style, hypocrisy, seduction, simulation and fatality. Although these themes abound in postmodern thought, they are also evident in a certain strand of modernist thought - one which embraces the writings of Baudelaire and Nietzsche. Baudrillard's protestation is that he is not a postmodernist is taken seriously in this collection. The balanced and accessible style of the contributions and the fairness and rigour of the assessments make this book of pressing interest to students of sociology, philosophy and cultural studies.

Without doubt, Jean Baudrillard is one of the most important figures currently working in the area of sociology an dcultural studies, but his writings infuriate as many people as they intoxcicate. This collection provides a wide-ranging, measured assessment of Baudrillard's work. The contributors examine Baudrillard's relation to consumption, modernity, postmodernity, social theory, feminism, politics and culture. They attempt to steer a clear course between the hype which Baudrillard himself has done much to generate, and the solid value of his startling thoughts. Baudrillard's ideas and style of expression provide a challenge to established academic ways of proceeding and thinking. The book explores this challenge and speculates on the reason for the extreme responses to Baudrillard's work. The appeal of Baudrillard's arguments is clearly discussed and his place in contemporary social theory is shrewdly assessed. Baudrillard emerges as a chameleon figure, but one who is obsessed with the central themes of style, hypocrisy, seduction, simulation and fatality. Although these themes abound in postmodern thought, they are also evident in a certain strand of modernist thought - one which embraces the writings of Baudelaire and Nietzsche. Baudrillard's protestation is that he is not a postmodernist is taken seriously in this collection. The balanced and accessible style of the contributions and the fairness and rigour of the assessments make this book of pressing interest to students of sociology, philosophy and cultural studies.

It is becoming ever clearer that while people tour cultures, cultures and objects themselves are in a constant state of migration. This collection brings together some of the most influential writers in the field to examine the complex connections between tourism and cultural change and the relevance of tourist experience to current theoretical debates on space, time and identity.

It is becoming ever clearer that while people tour cultures, cultures and objects themselves are in a constant state of migration. This collection brings together some of the most influential writers in the field to examine the complex connections between tourism and cultural change and the relevance of tourist experience to current theoretical debates on space, time and identity.

Jean-Francois Lyotard is still considered to be the father of postmodernism. An international range of contributors in the field of cultural and philosophical studies, including Barry Smart, John O' Neill and Victor J. Seidler consider Lyotard's writings on justice and politics of difference, feminism, youth and Judaism.

In recent years, the study of celebrity has developed and cohered into a flourishing field of social and cultural analysis. There is huge interest in topics such as the politics and logic of glamour; the role of the public-relations industry in manipulating television audiences; the relationship between fame and social control; and the economics of the so-called celebrity industry. And as interest in celebrity continues to explode, a variety of forerunners to its study—drawing on materials from a wide range of disciplines including sociology, cultural studies, history, psychology, organization studies, politics, film, and literary studies—have been rediscovered and reformulated. Among the lines of enquiry and critical tools that have been recuperated as pertinent to the study of celebrity are leadership, charisma, role models, heroes, role sets, ideology, manipulation, commodification, interpellation, narcissism, signification and individuality.The sheer scale of the available research exploring the many implications of the phenomenon of celebrity—and the breadth and complexity of the canon on which celebrity studies draws—makes this new Major Work from Routledge especially timely. It answers the urgent need for a wide-ranging collection which provides easy access to the key items of scholarly literature, material that is often inaccessible or scattered throughout a variety of specialist journals and books. In four volumes, Celebrity brings together the best and most influential foundational and cutting-edge research on: the aetiology and basic concepts of celebrity (including charisma, narcissism, and commodification); theoretical and methodological approaches (e.g. Marxism, structuralism, semiotics, and cultural materialism); the mechanics of celebrity (such as the sociology and psychology of showmanship); and key controversies and current debates (e.g. the politics of stardom; the superstructure of celebrity; and the interpellation of celebrity news and the media).Celebrity is supplemented with a full index, and includes a comprehensive introduction, newly written by the editor, which places the collected material in its historical and intellectual context. It is destined to be valued by scholars, students, and researchers as a vital research resource.

Research in and around popular culture continues to flourish. And its study is, more than ever, a key component of Media and Communications Studies courses, and a vital part of Cultural Studies and Cultural Sociology curricula.The sheer scale of the available research exploring popular culture—and the breadth and complexity of the canon on which it draws—makes this new four-volume Routledge collection especially timely. It answers the urgent need for a wide-ranging collection which provides ready access to the key items of scholarly literature, material that is often inaccessible or scattered throughout a variety of specialist journals and books from a broad range of disciplines.Volume I (‘History and Theory’) brings together the best work on the rise of popular culture as a subject for serious academic study, uncovering its roots and exploring its rapid development in the years after the Second World War. Key debates (e.g. between base and superstructure, hegemony and control, colonialism and postcolonialism) are traced to provide users with a clear understanding of the foundational approaches that inform the more applied examinations of popular culture in the succeeding volumes.Volume II assembles the most important thinking on ‘Ideology and Representation’, including work drawn from feminism, structuralism, post-structuralism, and postmodernism. Volume III gathers crucial work on ‘Fissures and Fusions’, while the last volume in the set is organized around ‘Critical Departures’.Popular Culture is supplemented with a full index, and includes a comprehensive introduction, newly written by the editor, which places the collected material in its historical and intellectual context. It is destined to be valued by scholars and advanced students as a vital research and reference resource.

First published in 1985, this title explores theories of leisure in a capitalist society. Basing his argument on a refutation of the conventional association of leisure with freedom and free time, Chris Rojek examines the four main structural characteristics of modern leisure practice: privatisation, individuation, commercialisation and pacification. The writings of Marx, Durkheim, Weber, and Freud are used to locate the question of leisure in more mainstream social theory. This interesting reissue will be of particular value to students of sociology and leisure studies, and those with an interest in the relationship between leisure and power.

First published in 1985, this title explores theories of leisure in a capitalist society. Basing his argument on a refutation of the conventional association of leisure with freedom and free time, Chris Rojek examines the four main structural characteristics of modern leisure practice: privatisation, individuation, commercialisation and pacification. The writings of Marx, Durkheim, Weber, and Freud are used to locate the question of leisure in more mainstream social theory. This interesting reissue will be of particular value to students of sociology and leisure studies, and those with an interest in the relationship between leisure and power.

Jean-Francois Lyotard is still considered to be the father of postmodernism. An international range of contributors in the field of cultural and philosophical studies, including Barry Smart, John O' Neill and Victor J. Seidler consider Lyotard's writings on justice and politics of difference, feminism, youth and Judaism.

The new edition of the benchmark work in the field, extensively revised and expanded throughoutThe Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2nd Edition is the definitive reference work for students, researchers, librarians, and academics in the field. Presenting in-depth coverage of all the major sub-disciplines of sociology, this comprehensive resource contains nearly 2300 specially commissioned entries written and edited by an international team of leading scholars.Published as both an online edition and as an twelve-volume set, The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2nd Edition provides a comprehensive, up-to-date guide of key concepts, theories, methodologies, ideas, research, and debates in the expansive field of sociology and beyond.The second edition contains more than 300 entirely new entries reflecting original work on topics related to globalization, social and political movements, genders and sexualities, race and ethnicity, nationalism, health and society, social theory, and more. Many previous entries have been carefully examined and updated with new data, new ideas, recent publications, and more.An unparalleled resource for mapping contemporary sociology and generating new debates, The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2nd Edition: Provides clear and concise descriptions of key concepts in sociology, written by leading experts in the field.Contains an unparalleled range of entries, from definitions of key terms to extended explorations of contemporary topics.Covers foundational work, recent developments, new research, and emerging trends in the field.Includes sociological research and theories from around the world, with particular attention paid to the increasingly global nature of sociological research.Features sophisticated cross-referencing and search tools, the most globally comprehensive timeline in print, a lexicon by subject area, and extensive bibliographies.Remaining an indispensable reference for academics, researchers, and students in sociology and allied disciplines, The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2nd Edition, is also a must-have for college and university libraries.

Stuart Hall is the leading figure in cultural studies today – no one else has had the same influence in the shaping of the field. This book is the first full-length study of Hall's work. It examines every aspect of his work and constitutes a major critical introduction and appraisal of Hall's contribution.The book guides the reader through Hall's formative experience in Jamaica and Oxford. It examines the increasing politicization of his thought and his identification with emancipatory, socialist politics. In Birmingham, during his Directorship of the seminal Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies, Hall created a genuinely collaborative approach to the study of culture. In a series of dazzling publications in the 1970s, the Birmingham Centre changed the way in which social scientists think about culture. The book provides a complete guide to the debates and contribution of the Birmingham School. It explores Hall's relation with Marx, Gramsci, Althusser and a variety of traditions in continental sociology and philosophy. In the 1980s Hall occupied the vanguard of criticism against Thatcherism and Reaganism. His passionate, principled attack on the New Right and his critique of authoritarian populism reached a readership well beyond the confines of the academy. His later work has moved on to the terrain of hybridity, identity, Occidentalism, race relations. multiculturalism and the politics of difference. All of these areas are methodically explored in the book, making it the most complete study of Hall's work and significance. It will be required reading by students and lecturers in cultural studies, media studies and sociology.

Stuart Hall is the leading figure in cultural studies today – no one else has had the same influence in the shaping of the field. This book is the first full-length study of Hall's work. It examines every aspect of his work and constitutes a major critical introduction and appraisal of Hall's contribution.The book guides the reader through Hall's formative experience in Jamaica and Oxford. It examines the increasing politicization of his thought and his identification with emancipatory, socialist politics. In Birmingham, during his Directorship of the seminal Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies, Hall created a genuinely collaborative approach to the study of culture. In a series of dazzling publications in the 1970s, the Birmingham Centre changed the way in which social scientists think about culture. The book provides a complete guide to the debates and contribution of the Birmingham School. It explores Hall's relation with Marx, Gramsci, Althusser and a variety of traditions in continental sociology and philosophy. In the 1980s Hall occupied the vanguard of criticism against Thatcherism and Reaganism. His passionate, principled attack on the New Right and his critique of authoritarian populism reached a readership well beyond the confines of the academy. His later work has moved on to the terrain of hybridity, identity, Occidentalism, race relations. multiculturalism and the politics of difference. All of these areas are methodically explored in the book, making it the most complete study of Hall's work and significance. It will be required reading by students and lecturers in cultural studies, media studies and sociology.

Frank Sinatra was only one of a handful of popular entertainers who dominated Western popular culture for six decades. From his early fame as 'the Voice' in the early 1940s, through to the high rolling, fast living 'Rat Pack' era, to the protracted Lear-like farewell tours of his twilight years, Sinatra was the epitome of cool. This compelling, consistently insightful book portrays Sinatra in his many contradictory hues of ambition, generosity, menace and vituperation. The book asks why Sinatra's public character which mixed insufferable hauteur with soapy populism and nobility with the lowest kind of vindictive violence proved so enduring with the Western public? What model of masculinity was Sinatra projecting? Why did his recordings, concert performances and film work persuade audiences that he was really talking to them alone? What does his career tell us about the relationship between celebrity and popular culture? Sinatra may not have found his Boswell with this study, but our understanding of him will never be the same again. Rojek's is the first book to take Sinatra's cultural significance seriously. It is a landmark work in our understanding of celebrity and popular culture. The book will be of interest to students of Cultural, Media and Communication Studies, Sociology and, most of all, anyone who has bought a Sinatra recording or seen a Sinatra film.

Frank Sinatra was only one of a handful of popular entertainers who dominated Western popular culture for six decades. From his early fame as 'the Voice' in the early 1940s, through to the high rolling, fast living 'Rat Pack' era, to the protracted Lear-like farewell tours of his twilight years, Sinatra was the epitome of cool. This compelling, consistently insightful book portrays Sinatra in his many contradictory hues of ambition, generosity, menace and vituperation. The book asks why Sinatra's public character which mixed insufferable hauteur with soapy populism and nobility with the lowest kind of vindictive violence proved so enduring with the Western public? What model of masculinity was Sinatra projecting? Why did his recordings, concert performances and film work persuade audiences that he was really talking to them alone? What does his career tell us about the relationship between celebrity and popular culture? Sinatra may not have found his Boswell with this study, but our understanding of him will never be the same again. Rojek's is the first book to take Sinatra's cultural significance seriously. It is a landmark work in our understanding of celebrity and popular culture. The book will be of interest to students of Cultural, Media and Communication Studies, Sociology and, most of all, anyone who has bought a Sinatra recording or seen a Sinatra film.

What has the death of Corporal Patrick D. Tillman of the US Army Rangers in an incident of friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004 got to do with culture? How has the study of ideology, coding, theming and representation by Cultural Studies helped us to understand Reality TV, the Internet, mobile phones, the iPod and leading brands in neat capitalism like Virgin, The Body Shop and Apple? This lively and assured book provides a concise and authoritative critical guide to Cultural Studies. It demonstrates that the field has moved through four moments': the National/Popular, the Textual/Representational, Global/Post Essentialism and Governmentality/Policy. It illustrates the meaning of each of these moments by a discussion of representative texts and concrete examples from popular culture. As such, it achieves a novel and accessible account of the origins and development of the field.The book also shows how the readers personal experience can be systematically situated in cultural forces and used as a resource to clarify how culture works, through the analysis of on-location practice, embodiment, emplacement and context. Packed with illuminating examples, and a clear and compelling prose style, the book is the antidote to abstract, hazy accounts of the meaning and value of Cultural Studies. It is the ideal text for readers new to the field, but it will also be appreciated by established practitioners as good to think with.

What has the death of Corporal Patrick D. Tillman of the US Army Rangers in an incident of friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004 got to do with culture? How has the study of ideology, coding, theming and representation by Cultural Studies helped us to understand Reality TV, the Internet, mobile phones, the iPod and leading brands in neat capitalism like Virgin, The Body Shop and Apple? This lively and assured book provides a concise and authoritative critical guide to Cultural Studies. It demonstrates that the field has moved through four moments': the National/Popular, the Textual/Representational, Global/Post Essentialism and Governmentality/Policy. It illustrates the meaning of each of these moments by a discussion of representative texts and concrete examples from popular culture. As such, it achieves a novel and accessible account of the origins and development of the field.The book also shows how the readers personal experience can be systematically situated in cultural forces and used as a resource to clarify how culture works, through the analysis of on-location practice, embodiment, emplacement and context. Packed with illuminating examples, and a clear and compelling prose style, the book is the antidote to abstract, hazy accounts of the meaning and value of Cultural Studies. It is the ideal text for readers new to the field, but it will also be appreciated by established practitioners as good to think with.

What is happening to pop music and pop culture? Synthesizers, samplers and MDI systems have allowed anyone with basic computing skills to make music. Exchange is now automatic and weightless, with the result that the high street record store is dying. MySpace, Twitter and YouTube are now more important publicity venues for new bands than the concert tour routine. Unauthorized consumption in the form of illegal downloading has created a financial crisis in the industry. The old postwar industrial planning model of pop, which centralized control in the hands of major record corporations, and divided the market into neat segments, is dissolving in front of our eyes. This book offers readers a comprehensive guide to understanding pop music today. It provides a clear survey of the field and a description of core concepts. The main theoretical approaches to the analysis of pop are described and critically assessed. The book includes a penetrating investigation of the revolutionary changes in the production, exchange and consumption of pop music that are currently underway.Pop Music, Pop Culture is an accomplished, magnetically interesting guide to understanding pop music today.

What is happening to pop music and pop culture? Synthesizers, samplers and MDI systems have allowed anyone with basic computing skills to make music. Exchange is now automatic and weightless, with the result that the high street record store is dying. MySpace, Twitter and YouTube are now more important publicity venues for new bands than the concert tour routine. Unauthorized consumption in the form of illegal downloading has created a financial crisis in the industry. The old postwar industrial planning model of pop, which centralized control in the hands of major record corporations, and divided the market into neat segments, is dissolving in front of our eyes. This book offers readers a comprehensive guide to understanding pop music today. It provides a clear survey of the field and a description of core concepts. The main theoretical approaches to the analysis of pop are described and critically assessed. The book includes a penetrating investigation of the revolutionary changes in the production, exchange and consumption of pop music that are currently underway.Pop Music, Pop Culture is an accomplished, magnetically interesting guide to understanding pop music today.

‘Presumed intimacy’ refers to a relationship that requires instant trust, confidence, disclosure and the recognition of vulnerability. Chris Rojek investigates the impact of relationships of ‘presumed intimacy’, where audiences form strong identifications with mediated others, whether they be celebrities, political personae or online friends. Arguing that the way the media are able to manage these relationships is a significant aspect of their power structure, the core of the book is an investigation into the complicity of the media in encouraging presumed intimacy and the cultural, social and political consequences arising from this. Beyond this, it examines how intimacy is performed as a masquerade in many social settings – the scripts we follow in social settings that try to manufacture a shortcut to intimacy.A compelling look into mediated relationships in the network society, Presumed Intimacy will be a key contribution to the critical analysis of society, media and culture.

‘Presumed intimacy’ refers to a relationship that requires instant trust, confidence, disclosure and the recognition of vulnerability. Chris Rojek investigates the impact of relationships of ‘presumed intimacy’, where audiences form strong identifications with mediated others, whether they be celebrities, political personae or online friends. Arguing that the way the media are able to manage these relationships is a significant aspect of their power structure, the core of the book is an investigation into the complicity of the media in encouraging presumed intimacy and the cultural, social and political consequences arising from this. Beyond this, it examines how intimacy is performed as a masquerade in many social settings – the scripts we follow in social settings that try to manufacture a shortcut to intimacy.A compelling look into mediated relationships in the network society, Presumed Intimacy will be a key contribution to the critical analysis of society, media and culture.

Sociology has evolved greatly since it's inception as an academic discipline. It has diverged into numerous strands often flowing in disparate directions - so much so that today the notion of canonical sociology has become widely disputed. The field of sociology at present approximates to one of multi-paradigmatic complexity in which many approaches to theory must be distinguished and situated. In addition, the discipline has had to confront new challenges from globalization, the shift of interest from production to consumption, the rise of new social movements, the challenge of bio-engineering, the collapse of a 'presently existing socialist alternative' and much else besides.

The new SAGE Handbook of Sociology aims to address these new developments, while at the same time providing an authoritative guide to theory and method, the key sub-disciplines and the primary debates of today. To undertake this ambitious project three leading figures in the field of sociology were selected as editors to bring together the foremost exponents of the different strands that contribute towards the make up modern sociology. Drawn from both sides of the Atlantic the contributors have been commissioned to utilise the most up to date research available to provide a critical, international analysis of their area of expertise.

The result is this essential resource collection that not just reflects upon the condition of sociology today but also looks to future developments in the discipline. The Handbook is invaluable not just all sociologists but to a wide variety of students and researchers across the social sciences.

Click on 'Sample Chapters & Resources' to download the introduction.

Society and Culture reclaims the classical heritage, provides a clear-eyed assessment of the promise of sociology in the 21st century and asks whether the `cultural turn' has made the study of society redundant.

Sociologists have objected to the rise of cultural studies on the grounds that it produces cultural relativism and lacks a stable research agenda. This book looks at these criticisms and illustrates the relevance of a sociological perspective in the analysis of human practice. The book argues that the classical tradition must be treated as a living tradition, rather than a period piece. It analyzes the fundamental principles of belonging and conflict in society and provides a detailed critical survey of the principal social theories that offer solutions to the challenges of modernism.

Society and Culture reclaims the classical heritage, provides a clear-eyed assessment of the promise of sociology in the 21st century and asks whether the `cultural turn' has made the study of society redundant.

Sociologists have objected to the rise of cultural studies on the grounds that it produces cultural relativism and lacks a stable research agenda. This book looks at these criticisms and illustrates the relevance of a sociological perspective in the analysis of human practice. The book argues that the classical tradition must be treated as a living tradition, rather than a period piece. It analyzes the fundamental principles of belonging and conflict in society and provides a detailed critical survey of the principal social theories that offer solutions to the challenges of modernism.

This book explores the meaning of leisure in the context of key social formations of our time. Chris Rojek brings together the insights of feminsim, Marxism, Weber, Elias, Simmel, Nietzsche and Baudrillard to produce a survey - and rethinking - of leisure theory. At the same time he presents a radical critique of the traditional 'centring' of leisure, on 'escape', 'freedom' and 'choice'.

Revealing how leisure practices have responded to living in a risk society, he shows that 'free' time becomes something very different when simulation and nostalgia lie at the heart of everyday life.