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Acculturated

23 Savvy Writers Find Hidden Virtue in Reality TV, Chic Lit, Video Games, and Other Pillars of Pop Culture

Edited by Naomi Schaefer Riley and Christine Rosen

Published by: Templeton Press

Subjects:General Interest, Sociology, Popular Culture

212 Pages, 6.0 x 9.0 in

Paperback
9781599474045
Published: May 1, 2012

$18.95

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EPUB
9781599473857
Published: September 1, 2012

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Description
Contents
Authors
Praise

Contemporary popular culture, from books to film to television to music to the deepest corners of the internet, has provoked much criticism, some of it well deserved. Yet, popular culture is culture for many Americans—particularly younger Americans. It is the only kind of cultural experience they seek and the currency in which they trade.

In Acculturated, twenty-three thinkers examine the rituals, the myths, the tropes, the peculiar habits, the practices, and the neuroses of our modern era. Every culture finds a way for people to tell stories about themselves. We rely on these stories to teach us why we do the things we do, to test the limits of our experience, to reaffirm deeply felt truths about human nature, and to teach younger generations about vice and virtue, honor and shame, and a great deal more. A phenomenon like the current crop of reality television shows, for example, with their bevy of “real” housewives, super-size families, and toddler beauty-pageant candidates, seems an unlikely place to find truths about human nature or examples of virtue. And yet, on these shows, and in much else of what passes for popular culture these days, a surprising theme emerges: Move beyond the visual excess and hyperbole, and you will find the makings of classic morality tales.

As the title suggests, readers will find in these pages “A-Culture Rated.” This lively roundtable of “raters” includes renowned cultural critics like Caitlin Flannigan and Chuck Colson and celebrated culture creators like the producers of the hit ABC comedy Modern Family and the host of TLC’s What Not to Wear. Editors Christine Rosen and Naomi Schaefer Riley have tasked these contributors—both the critics and the insiders—with taking a step or two back from the unceasing din of popular culture so that they might better judge its value and its values and help readers think more deeply about the meaning of the narratives with which they are bombarded every waking minute. In doing so, the editors hope to foster a wide-reaching public conversation to help us think more clearly about our culture.

CONTRIBUTORS INCLUDE Judy Bachrach, Megan Basham, Mark Bauerlein, Pia Catton, Chuck Colson, Paul Corrigan, Caitlin Flanagan, Meghan Cox Gurdon, Margo Howard, Kay S. Hymowitz, Jonathan V. Last, Herb London, Stacy London, Rob Long, Megan McArdle, Wilfred M. McClay, Caitrin Nicol, Joe Queenan, Emily Esfahani Smith, Brad Walsh, and Tony Woodlief.

“Acculturated consists of essays in the best sense of the term—always readable and concise, often witty and entertaining, providing unconventional takes on their subjects and illuminating them with flashes of genuine insight. Covering a remarkable range of topics in contemporary pop culture, the essays offer a composite portrait of America today—with all its sublimities and absurdities. The authors may be critical of pop culture, but unlike many academics, they show that they are familiar with and have a feel for the phenomena in which they write.” —Paul A. Cantor, author of Gilligan Unbound: Pop Culture in the Age of Globalization
“Sizing up and taking down the things we read, watch, and play, this all-star team of analysts provides a series of delights and surprises that will make you ponder the deep structures that inform our lives, even when we think we’re off-duty. As one essay puts it, ‘Style matters.’ Yes, and so does fun. —Kyle Smith, movie critic, New York Post
“Acculturated is a collection of brief, sharp-eyed, complex—and in the best sense of that sadly overused and abused term, entertaining—accounts of present-day American sensibilities and daily lives. It could have been titled The Way We Live Now, and no one in the country will not experience the comfort of finding his habits and attitudes reflected in at least some, if not every last, of its pages.” —Midge Decter, author of An Old Wife’s Tale

"Any college-level collection strong in the cultural analysis will consider this a lively, insightful survey." —California Bookwatch
"Editors and authors Rosen and Riley compile 23 US writers and journalists' essays examining what popular culture teaches people about themselves and how society can reclaim popular culture to discuss concepts like virtue and character. They consider how reality TV, children’s and teen culture, Facebook, YouTube, video games, Lady Gaga, professional sports, blogs, cooking shows, celebrity chefs, and other pop culture forms teach people about how to behave and treat each other in relationships, including online dating and adultery, and how well those lessons are learned; how it reflects children’s experiences; how it has changed the way people spend their leisure time; and effects on self-improvement, such as in forgiveness and death and dying." —Book News, Inc
"Editors and authors Rosen and Riley compile essays by 23 US writers and journalists who examine what popular culture has to teach people about themselves and how society can reclaim popular culture to discuss concepts like virtue and character." —SciTech Book News