The Meaning of Difference: American Constructions of Race, Sex and Gender, Social Class, Sexual Orientation, and Disability

Karen E. Rosenblum, Toni-Michelle C. Travis

McGraw-Hill, Jan 31, 2008 - Social Science - 552 pages

The Meaning of Difference focuses on the social construction of difference as it operates in American formulations of race and ethnicity, sex and gender, social class, sexual orientation, and disability. The conceptual structure of this text-reader comes from four framework essays addressing the construction of difference, the experience of difference, the social meaning of difference, and social action that might bridge differences. Each framework essay is followed by a set of readings selected for readability, conceptual depth, and applicability to a variety of statuses. Boxed inserts throughout offer first-person accounts from real people, many of them students. This edition features an expanded focus on disability and 29 new readings, including articles on how immigration is transforming the nature of American race and ethnic categories, the changing shape of higher education, and the experience of Americans of Middle-Eastern descent.

Contents

• WHAT IS RACE? WHAT IS ETHNICITY?: 40
• I Thought My Race Was Invisible: 78
• The Best of Both Worlds: 93

About the author

Karen E. Rosenblum is Associate Professor of Sociology and Vice President for University Life at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. She is a former Director of Women’s Studies and the Women’s Studies Research and Resource Center and a faculty member in Cultural Studies. Professor Rosenblum received her Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Her areas of research and teaching include sex and gender, language, and deviance. Toni-Michelle C. Travis is Associate Professor of Government and Politics at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. She is also a faculty member in the Women’s Studies and African American Studies Programs. Professor Travis received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Chicago. Her areas of research and teaching include race and gender in political participation, and urban politics. She has served as the President of the National Capital Area Political Science Association and the Women’s Caucus of the American Political Science Association. She hosts Capital Regional Roundtable, a cable television show, and is a frequent commentator on Virginia politics.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Meaning of Difference: American Constructions of Race, Sex and Gender, Social Class, Sexual Orientation, and Disability
• Authors: Karen E. Rosenblum, Toni-Michelle C. Travis
• Edition: 5, illustrated
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill, 2008
• ISBN: 0073380059, 9780073380056
• Length: 552 pages
• Subjects: Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural; Social Science / Gender Studies; Social Science / Sociology / General