Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America explained
| Author: | James Davison Hunter |
| Isbn: | 9780465015337 |
| Pub Date: | December 2, 1991 |
| Genre: | Political Science |
| Publisher: | Basic Books |
Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America is a book written by James Davison Hunter and published in 1991.[1] It concerns the idea of a struggle to define American public life between two cultures: the progressives and the orthodox. The book illustrates its framework of historical analysis through several of the contemporary issues of the time: abortion rights, school prayer, gay rights, and more.[2]
Progressive and orthodox views are primarily systems of moral understanding. He identifies orthodoxy as a viewpoint through which moral truth is static, universal, and sanctioned through divine powers; contrasting progressivism, which sees moral truth as evolving and contextual. These two groups are locked in an everlasting "culture war"[3] to assert dominion over the various institutional and systemic entities influenced by contemporary cultural praxis, most visibly the governing branches of America.[4] [5]
Sources
- Grimes . Michael D. . Review . Social Science Quarterly . 74 . 1 . 1993 . 230 . 42863186 .
- Johnson . D. Paul . Review . Journal of Church and State . 34 . 3 . 1992 . 607–608 . 10.1093/jcs/34.3.607 . 23919465 .
- Kurtz . Lester R. . Review . American Journal of Sociology . 99 . 4 . 1994 . 1125–1128 . 10.1086/230395 . 2781763 .
- Mechling . Jay . Review . American Studies . 35 . 1 . 1994 . 155–156 . 40642591 .
Notes and References
- Book: Hunter, James Davison . Culture Wars: The Struggle To Define America . 1991-12-02 . Basic Books . 978-0-465-01533-7 . en.
- Kowaleski . Mark R. . James Davison Hunter. "Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America" (Book Review) . Sociological Analysis . Fall 1992 . 53 . 3 . 337–338 . 10.2307/3711713. 3711713 .
- News: Willick. Jason. 2018-05-25. The Man Who Discovered 'Culture Wars'. en-US. The Wall Street Journal. 2022-02-15. 0099-9660.
- Web site: Transcript: Is There a Culture War?. May 23, 2006 . Pew Research Center.
- Web site: Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction . Kirkus.
