HOME | BESTSELLERS | NEW RELEASES | PRICE WATCH | FICTION | BIOGRAPHIES | E-BOOKS |
+ PRICE WATCH
* Amazon pricing is not included in price watch
A World of Their Own Making: History of Myth and Ritual in Family Life Book
Christmas, birthdays, Valentine's Day, white weddings, Father's Day and Mother's Day - all timeless traditions that have been part of family life for generations. Or are they? In this history of family life, John Gillis points out how they are rituals of recent invention, from the Victorian era. Our society is presently obsessed with the notion of "family values", and we kindle a nostalgia for a close family life that existed in previous generations. Yet John Gillis argues that the past which historians reconstruct is different from our own idealized notions. For example, families were rarely stable and secure environments: children were orphaned or left home at an early age to work and early widowhood was common. We may hark back to a "golden age" of the family but it is only by accepting that our rituals and myths must be open to perpetual revision that we can satisfy our needs - this is demonstrated by the new kinds of rites, whether collective birthdays in old age or divorce ceremonies, that are developing. As the families we live with become more fragile, the symbolic families we live by become more powerful. Our families are indeed worlds of our own making. This book is intended for students and teachers of social history and sociology and anyone with an interest in the current debate on family values.Read More
from£N/A | RRP: * Excludes Voucher Code Discount Also available Used from £N/A
- 019288042X
- 9780192880420
- John R. Gillis
- 18 September 1997
- Oxford Paperbacks
- Paperback (Book)
- 330
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. If you click through any of the links below and make a purchase we may earn a small commission (at no extra cost to you). Click here to learn more.
Would you like your name to appear with the review?
We will post your book review within a day or so as long as it meets our guidelines and terms and conditions. All reviews submitted become the licensed property of www.find-book.co.uk as written in our terms and conditions. None of your personal details will be passed on to any other third party.
All form fields are required.