Youth Culture: Identity in a Postmodern World [Paperback]

Jonathan Epstein (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 25, 1998

This innovative collection of newly commissioned essays from leading experts in sociology and cultural studies looks at youth culture through subcultural identity. Youth Culture is the first text to bridge sociology and cultural studies in order to understand youth identity replacing the outmoded theories based on deviance. This volume examines the social worlds of young people in their "natural environments"; suburban bedrooms, shopping malls, rock concerts, and school. In addition, it explores the impact of the media and music on youth, using Beavis and Butthead, "grunge", and heavy metal bands as examples of youth subcultural identity.

Epstein's collection of prominent writers and researchers will give you a better understanding of why youths, in particular, are prone to collective identity, and how they achieve their sense of self through fashion, music, sports and entertainment.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

This innovative collection of newly commissioned essays from leading experts in sociology and cultural studies looks at youth culture through subcultural identity. Youth Culture is the first text to bridge sociology and cultural studies in order to understand youth identity replacing the outmoded theories based on deviance. This volume examines the social worlds of young people in their "natural environments"; suburban bedrooms, shopping malls, rock concerts, and school. In addition, it explores the impact of the media and music on youth, using Beavis and Butthead, "grunge", and heavy metal bands as examples of youth subcultural identity.

Epstein's collection of prominent writers and researchers will give you a better understanding of why youths, in particular, are prone to collective identity, and how they achieve their sense of self through fashion, music, sports and entertainment.

About the Author

Jonathon S. Epstein is an internationally recognized expert on youth culture and rock music. He is a senior consultant for the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame and a Lecturer at Kent State University. He is the author of Adolescents and Their Music: If It's Too Loud You're Too Old (1994).

Product Details

• Paperback: 344 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition (August 25, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557868514
• ISBN-13: 978-1557868510
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,283,571 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Where do they get off?, April 6, 2001

By 

Nick Danger (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Youth Culture: Identity in a Postmodern World (Hardcover)

I've associated myself with punk culture since I was 14. I'm 21 now, and as a college student, I find myself growing out of my angst and search of identity. I was interested, then, to see an objective point of view on why someone like me would have been drawn to such a subculture.

I searched my school library's limited database for the word "punk" and this book came up. I checked it out, and thoroughly enjoyed the forward. It offers an earnest plea for a fair observation of my generation.

350 pages later, I feel none-too-enlightened. I read the whole thing, cursing as I went. No one understands youth but the youth themselves. Don't waste your time with this book.