Commonplaces - Community Ideology and Identity in American Culture

This book interprets popular American belief and sentiment about cities, suburbs, and small towns in terms of community ideologies. Based on in-depth interviews with residents of American communities, it shows how people construct a sense of identity based on their communities, and how they perceive and explain community problems (e.g., why cities have more crime than their suburban and rural counterparts) in terms of this identity.

Hummon reveals the changing role of place imagery in contemporary society and offers an interpretation of American culture by treating commonplaces of community belief in an uncommon way-as facets of competing community ideologies. He argues that by adopting such ideologies, people are able to "make sense" of reality and their place in the everyday world.

About the author

David M. Hummon is Associate Professor of Sociology at Holy Cross College.

Product details

• Authors: David M Hummon, David M. Hummon, David Mark Hummon
• Publisher: SUNY Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 05.07.1990
• EAN: 9780791402764
• ISBN: 978-0-7914-0276-4
• No. of pages: 256
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 229 mm x 15 mm
• Weight: 421 g
• Series: Suny Series, Feminist Theory i; Suny Series, Feminist Theory i; Suny the Sociology of Culture
• Subject: Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Sociological theories