Customer Reviews

Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book is ONLY the supporting text for the ACTUAL textbook, also by Newman. This book is only the READINGS section NOT the ACTUAL textbook you (most likely) need.

ordered this textbookj for son in college. received in time for class. thanks

I bought a book on august 23 and I still have not received the book. I have tried so many times to communicate with the seller but they just won't reply back. Horrible communication from the seller.

Product arrived on time and in good condition. Some kind of sawdust was present in the package and made a mess, but no damage to the product.

This book is abosolutely fantastic and an easy read,a great text book, the research is current and well presented

I really enjoyed this textbook for the most part and would definitely recommend it for other sociology instructors.
The best thing about this book is that it is exceptionally easy to read because it is actually quite interesting. The author does a great job of relating the information in the text to real world examples which makes it much easier to understand. This also allows for the reader to understand how the ideas discussed in the text might have an effect on the society that they live in. Unlike many other textbooks, I found that this book had a lot of detailed, up-to-date data about what has gone on in different societies all over the world, not just in the USA. The author seems to be extremely knowledgeable about the subject, and also how it applies to different situations. I really like the author's writing style also. Although there are many new terms, they are defined in a way that makes it easy for the reader to grasp the concepts. Another thing I enjoy about this book is that the text flows really well. It isn't overly "academic" sounding, it can be read by just about anyone with a high school education.
There is really only one thing that I didn't like about the textbook, although the examples are extremely helpful, they seem to be somewhat long and drawn out. Sometimes it felt like I was learning more about the event itself than how it is related to the sociological ideas being discussed.
My favorite chapter is Chapter 12 which is titled "The Architecture of Inequality: Sex and Gender". I think this chapter is very interesting because the information discussed is so familiar. Everyone has had experience interacting with the opposite sex, and Chapter 12 discusses the differences in the way women and men are treated and behave. One of my favorite parts is the discussion of sexual violence towards women and how the author points out how women are told to take all these precautions to avoid being a victim of sexual violence instead of men being taught to control their sexual urges. If women do not take these precautions they are often said to be "inviting trouble" (p. 436).
I learned a lot about human behavior and social structure from this textbook. It makes it so much clearer that even though we are responsible for our choices, most things that influence our choices are out of our control. They are a product of our beliefs, and our beliefs are a product of the environment in which we grew up. So even though we might initially blame an individual for something, their choice is really just a product of what they have learned from the world around them.
I think that the author chose the title because it expresses that society is built like an architectural structure, each area plays an important part in its functioning, just like each piece in a building plays a part in holding it together and keeping it strong.