Identity
A Reader
- Paul du Gay - Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
- Jessica Evans - The Open University
- Peter Redman - The Open University
Divided into three parts: Language, Ideology and Discourse; Psychoanalysis and Psycho-Social Relations; and Identity, Sociology and History, this book invites readers to compare and contrast cultural studies approaches with psychoanalytic and historical and sociological accounts of identity formation.
The Identity Reader will be an essential sourcebook for students of cultural studies, gender studies, social psychology, and sociology.
The key statements are from the work of:
Louis Althusser, Jessica Benjamin, Emile Benveniste, Homi K Bhabha, Pierre Bourdieu, Judith Butler, Ian Craib, Jacques D[ac]errida, Norbert Elias, Frantz Fanon, Michel Foucault, Anthony Giddens, Stuart Hall, Pierre Hadot, Melanie Klein, Jacques Lacan, Christopher Lasch, Isabel Menzies, Lyth, T H Marshall, Marcel Mauss, Am[gr]elie Okensberg Rorty, Jacqueline Rose, Nikolas Rose, Michael Rustin, Kaja Silverman, Max Weber, D W Winnicott
`This ability to raise so many interesting themes and questions is precisely one of the strengths of this Reader. Another is a choice of contributions based on an historical perspective that enables us to trace some of the main threads in the debate over identity in a variety of disciplines in the last fifty years. In conclusion: an invaluable tool for scholars in the field' - Discourse & Society
" ‘Identity’ is one of the most overused but least considered terms in the lexicon of the contemporary humanities and social sciences. This volume brings together many of the key texts that will contribute to a more thoughtful understanding of the many issues involved in this elusive and deceptively difficult concept. The editors are not merely innocent anthologisers, however. They bring a sharp critical eye and a polemical editorial line to their task."
this is a great resource for students to review and dip into gathering knowledge and discussion on the nature of identity in context
An excellent reader of key texts on Identity, but following a period of reflection I could not recommend it as a key text for my students within our current programme.
The book is a great reader - but I found myself wishing there was more material outside the scope of psychoanalysis. I liked the psychoanalysis material, but the students were very keen to get to the last section of the book after spending much time on psychoanalytical material. The third year students also found the readings (esp Rose, Beneviste, etc) difficult. The addition of summaries and bullet points at the end of chapters would have helped them assimilate the material more easily.
An excellent book covering several theorists such as Butler, Foucault, Winnicott and Derrida. Good for MA and EdD courses.
This is an outstanding and highly essential reader. One that both scholars and students can benefit from, from visual and media studies to cultural studies and even political communication.
This book is an excellent source for a class on identity. I believe it is especially valuable for upper-level undergraduate courses or courses that are cross-listed between upper level undergraduates and graduate students.
too peripheral to the aims of the course. This changed in development
This is a useful book for anyone studying this topic. Although niche, it does provide some good insights.
