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This digital document is an article from Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History, 2nd ed., brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 1035 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.The Early Civilizations in the Americas Reference Library provides a comprehensive overview of the history of the regions of the American continents in which two of the world's first civilizations developed: Mesoamerica (the name for the lands in which ancient civilizations arose in Central America and Mexico) and the Andes Mountains region of South America (in present-day Peru and parts of Bolivia, northern Argentina, and Ecuador). In both regions, the history of civilization goes back thousands of years. ... Read more

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The Game of Slipknot, Contrast and Critisizm
Countermodernism and Francophone Literary Culture : The Game of Slipknot (New Americanists) by Keith L. Walker

This book, was not only interesting but also puts you into a better perspecive to look at modern culture. How the world's beliefs and feelings have changes drastically. The main point of this story is about a heavy metal band Slipknot, and angered heavy metal band highly popular by rock/heavy metal fans, as they are considered as Maggots. As a huge fan of them I believe, I may have a different opinion than someone oblivious of the band. Overall I think this book is worth its money. So, if you are ready to take on a farely challenging book and enjoy criticing the modern art of music and culture this is the book for you. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History, 2nd ed., brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 1798 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.The Early Civilizations in the Americas Reference Library provides a comprehensive overview of the history of the regions of the American continents in which two of the world's first civilizations developed: Mesoamerica (the name for the lands in which ancient civilizations arose in Central America and Mexico) and the Andes Mountains region of South America (in present-day Peru and parts of Bolivia, northern Argentina, and Ecuador). In both regions, the history of civilization goes back thousands of years. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

of some interest, perhaps
Harris has an interesting story to tell, 'exotic' but also a bit tiresome as far as its characters. This reads like a poor man's Durrell; Harris's prose style is simply bad, as if he were writing quickly but in retrospect.Neither novel is in any real sense distinguished by literary merit, butthose who enjoy historical journeying romance might get a kick out of them. ... Read more

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In this superb cultural history, Hall presents a reasoned analysis of the meaning of Jonestown: why it happened and how it is tied to our history as a nation, our ideals, our practices, and the tensions of modern culture. Hall deflates the myths of Jonestown by exploring the social character of Jim Joness Peoples Temple--how much of what transpired was unique to the group and its leader and how much can be explained by reference to wider social processes?The book begins by examining the cultural origins of Jonestown: Who was Jim Jones? Where did he get his ideas and followers? How was his Peoples Temple established? The organiational base of the Temple is analyed through relevant comparisons with modern institutionalied practices in economics, bureaucracy, social control, public relations, and power. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

About This Book...
This review is for the Transaction Books first edition in hardcover: cloth over boards with a sewn binding in dustcover. 381 pp. Appendix. 40 pp of End Notes and a 10 p Bibliography. Indexed.

"If we are to learn anything of value from the murders and mass suicide at Jonestown, its history must be salvaged from popular myths, which are little more than superficial atrocity tales. In this superb cultural history, John R. Hall presents a reasoned analysis of the meaning of Jonestown: why it happened and how it is tied to our history as a nation, our ideals, our practices, and the tensions of modern culture. Hall deflates the myths of Jonestown by exploring the social character of Jim Jones's Peoples Temple - how much of what transpired was unique to the group and its leader and how much can be explained by reference to wider social processes? The book begins by examining the cultural origins of Jonestown: Who was Jim Jones? Where did he get his ideas and followers? How was his Peoples Temple established? The organizational base of the Temple is analyzed through relevant comparisons with modern institutionalized practices in economics, bureaucracy, social control, public relations, and power. The author then traces the situational causes of the Temple's conflict with its detractors, the collective migration to Guyana, and the mass suicide. By assessing the degree to which the Peoples Temple was truly an aberration or simply an exaggeration of our society's contradictions, the author deepens our understanding of a modern scape-goat."

About This Book
This review is for the Transaction Books first edition in hardcover: cloth over boards with a sewn binding in dustcover. 381 pp. Appendix. 40 pp of End Notes and a 10 p Bibliography. Indexed.

"If we are to learn anything of value from the murders and mass suicide at Jonestown, its history must be salvaged from popular myths, which are little more than superficial atrocity tales. In this superb cultural history, John R. Hall presents a reasoned analysis of the meaning of Jonestown: why it happened and how it is tied to our history as a nation, our ideals, our practices, and the tensions of modern culture. Hall deflates the myths of Jonestown by exploring the social character of Jim Jones's Peoples Temple - how much of what transpired was unique to the group and its leader and how much can be explained by reference to wider social processes? The book begins by examining the cultural origins of Jonestown: Who was Jim Jones? Where did he get his ideas and followers? How was his Peoples Temple established? The organizational base of the Temple is analyzed through relevant comparisons with modern institutionalized practices in economics, bureaucracy, social control, public relations, and power. The author then traces the situational causes of the Temple's conflict with its detractors, the collective migration to Guyana, and the mass suicide. By assessing the degree to which the Peoples Temple was truly an aberration or simply an exaggeration of our society's contradictions, the author deepens our understanding of a modern scape-goat."

The Most Objective Book So Far about Jonestown!
First of all, this book is not an easy read. The book is written by a sociologist who studied the case of Jonestown, Jim Jones, and the People's Temple. Be weary, this book is not beach material. If you have read other books on Jonestown and wanted some fresh insight like myself, this book will be ideal for you. Unfortunately, the print is small and plain. There are no photographs in the book or maps and charts like there should be to help understand the reading material. The author does paint an objective view of Jonestown. He doesn't disregard already reported facts but incorporates them into understanding the situation better.
Even thirty years later, we are still trying to understand Jonestown before another catastrophe of such magnitude can happen again. The author has no obvious connections to Jonestown, Jim Jones, or the People's Temple. The book is thoroughly researched and referenced with other books regarding the same subject. The author is a social scientist and this book chronicles the social science and the make-up of Jonestown. I find this book to answer other unanswered questions but I wished the layout was far more reader friendly. ... Read more