Welcome to Everytown

Welcome to Everytown PDF Author: Julian Baggini
Publisher: Granta Publications
ISBN: 1847089194
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
This study of an ordinary town in Northern England is “a thoughtful, sympathetic portrait of white working-class life…essential reading” (Guardian). What do the English think? Every country has a dominant set of beliefs and attitudes concerning everything from how to live a good life, how we should organize society, and the roles of the sexes. Yet despite many attempts to define England’s national character, what might be called the nation's philosophy has remained largely unexamined until now. Philosopher Julian Baggini pinpointed postcode S66 on the outskirts of Rotherham as England in microcosm—an area that reflected most accurately the full range of the nation's inhabitants, its most typical mix of urban and rural, old and young, married and single. He then spent six months living there, immersing himself in this typical English Everytown, in order to get to know the mind of a people. It sees the world as full of patterns and order, a view manifest in its enjoyment of gambling. It has a functional, puritanical streak, evident in its notoriously bad cuisine. In the English mind, men should be men and women should be women (but it's not sure what children should be). Sympathetic but critical, serious yet witty, Baggini's account of the English as represented by this particular spot on its map is both a portrait of its people and a personal story about being an alien in your own land. “Baggini turns out to be a sensitive observer who takes people and places on their own terms. He is also good at examining his own prejudices and fears.”—Independent “An insightful and often amusing investigation of what it means to be English.”—London Review of Books

Welcome to Everytown

Welcome to Everytown PDF Author: Julian Baggini
Publisher: Granta Publications
ISBN: 1847089194
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256

Get Book Here

Book Description
This study of an ordinary town in Northern England is “a thoughtful, sympathetic portrait of white working-class life…essential reading” (Guardian). What do the English think? Every country has a dominant set of beliefs and attitudes concerning everything from how to live a good life, how we should organize society, and the roles of the sexes. Yet despite many attempts to define England’s national character, what might be called the nation's philosophy has remained largely unexamined until now. Philosopher Julian Baggini pinpointed postcode S66 on the outskirts of Rotherham as England in microcosm—an area that reflected most accurately the full range of the nation's inhabitants, its most typical mix of urban and rural, old and young, married and single. He then spent six months living there, immersing himself in this typical English Everytown, in order to get to know the mind of a people. It sees the world as full of patterns and order, a view manifest in its enjoyment of gambling. It has a functional, puritanical streak, evident in its notoriously bad cuisine. In the English mind, men should be men and women should be women (but it's not sure what children should be). Sympathetic but critical, serious yet witty, Baggini's account of the English as represented by this particular spot on its map is both a portrait of its people and a personal story about being an alien in your own land. “Baggini turns out to be a sensitive observer who takes people and places on their own terms. He is also good at examining his own prejudices and fears.”—Independent “An insightful and often amusing investigation of what it means to be English.”—London Review of Books

Freedom Regained

Freedom Regained PDF Author: Julian Baggini
Publisher: Granta Books
ISBN: 1847087191
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Do we have free will? It's a question that has puzzled philosophers and theologians for centuries and feeds into numerous political, social, and personal concerns. Are we products of our culture, or free agents within it? How much responsibility should we take for our actions? Are our neural pathways fixed early on by a mixture of nature and nurture, or is the possibility of comprehensive, intentional psychological change always open to us? What role does our brain play in the construction of free will, and how much scientific evidence is there for the existence of it? What exactly are we talking about when we talk about 'freedom' anyway? In this cogent and compelling book, Julian Baggini explores the concept of free will from every angle, blending philosophy, neuroscience, sociology and cognitive science. Freedom Regained brings the issues raised by the possibilities - and denials - of free will to vivid life, drawing on scientific research and fascinating encounters with expert witnesses, from artists to addicts, prisoners to dissidents. Contemporary thinking tells us that free will is an illusion, and Baggini challenges this position, providing instead a new, more positive understanding of our sense of personal freedom: a freedom worth having.

The Politics of English Nationhood

The Politics of English Nationhood PDF Author: Michael Kenny
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191016144
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
Winner of the Political Studies Association WJM MacKenzie Prize for best book of 2014 The Politics of English Nationhood supplies the first comprehensive overview of the evidence, research and major arguments relating to the revival of Englishness, exploring its varied, and often overlooked, political ramifications and dimensions. It examines the difficulties which the major political parties have encountered in dealing with 'the English question' against the backdrop of the diminishing hold of established ideas of British government and national identity in the final years of the last century. And it explores a range of factors—including insecurities generated by economic change, Euroscepticism, and a growing sense of cultural anxiety — which helped make the renewal of Englishness appealing and imperative, prior to the introduction of devolution by the first Blair government, a policy which also gave this process a further impetus. The book therefore provides a powerful challenge to the two established orthodoxies in this area. These either maintain that the English are dispositionally unable to assert their own nationhood outside the framework of the British state, or point to the supposed resurgence of a resentful and reactive sense of English nationalism. This volume instead demonstrates that a renewed, resonant and internally divided sense of English nationhood is apparent across the lines of class, geography, age, and ethnicity. And it identifies several distinct strands of national identity that have emerged in this period, contrasting the appearance of populist and resentful forms of English nationalism with an embedded and deeply rooted sense of conservative Englishness and attempts to reconstruct a more liberal and civic idea of a multicultural England. This volume also includes a wide-ranging analysis of the culturally rooted revival of Englishness, drawing out the political dimensions and implications of this re-emerging form of national consciousness.

The Ego Trick

The Ego Trick PDF Author: Julian Baggini
Publisher: Granta Books
ISBN: 1847083773
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
Are you still the person who lived fifteen, ten or five years ago? Fifteen, ten or five minutes ago? Can you plan for your retirement if the you of thirty years hence is in some sense a different person? What and who is the real you? Does it remain constant over time and place, or is it something much more fragmented and fluid? Is it known to you, or are you as much a mystery to yourself as others are to you?With his usual wit, infectious curiosity and bracing scepticism, Julian Baggini sets out to answer these fundamental and unsettling questions. His fascinating quest draws on the history of philosophy, but also anthropology, sociology, psychology and neurology; he talks to theologians, priests, allegedly reincarnated Lamas, and delves into real-life cases of lost memory, personality disorders and personal transformation; and, candidly and engagingly, he describes his own experiences. After reading The Ego Trick, you will never see yourself in the same way again.

Welcome to Last Chance (A Place to Call Home Book #1)

Welcome to Last Chance (A Place to Call Home Book #1) PDF Author: Cathleen Armstrong
Publisher: Baker Books
ISBN: 1441242570
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
The red warning light on her car dashboard drove Lainie Davis to seek help in the tiny town of Last Chance, New Mexico. But as she encounters the people who make Last Chance their home, it's her heart that is flashing bright red warning lights. These people are entirely too nice, too accommodating, and too interested in her personal life for Lainie's comfort--especially since she's on the run and hoping to slip away unnoticed. Yet in spite of herself, Lainie finds that she is increasingly drawn in to the dramas of small town life. An old church lady who always has room for a stranger. A handsome bartender with a secret life. A single mom running her diner and worrying over her teenage son. Could Lainie actually make a life in this little hick town? Or will the past catch up to her even here in the middle of nowhere? Cathleen Armstrong pens a debut novel filled with complex, lovable characters making their way through life and relationships the best they can. Her evocative descriptions, observational humor, and talent at rendering romantic scenes will earn her many fans.

Injustice

Injustice PDF Author: Dorling, Danny
Publisher: Policy Press
ISBN: 1447320778
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 375

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Book Description
In the five years since the first edition of Injustice there have been devastating increases in poverty, hunger and destitution in the UK. Globally, the richest 1% have never held a greater share of world wealth, while the share of most of the other 99% has fallen in the last five years, with more and more people in debt, especially the young. Economic inequalities will persist and continue to grow for as long as we tolerate the injustices which underpin them. This fully rewritten and updated edition revisits Dorling’s claim that Beveridge’s five social evils are being replaced by five new tenets of injustice: elitism is efficient; exclusion is necessary; prejudice is natural; greed is good and despair is inevitable. By showing these beliefs are unfounded, Dorling offers hope of a more equal society. We are living in the most remarkable and dangerous times. With every year that passes it is more evident that Injustice is essential reading for anyone concerned with social justice and wants to do something about it.

The Philosopher's Toolkit

The Philosopher's Toolkit PDF Author: Julian Baggini
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1444357476
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
The second edition of this popular compendium provides the necessary intellectual equipment to engage with and participate in effective philosophical argument, reading, and reflection Features significantly revised, updated and expanded entries, and an entirely new section drawn from methods in the history of philosophy This edition has a broad, pluralistic approach--appealing to readers in both continental philosophy and the history of philosophy, as well as analytic philosophy Explains difficult concepts in an easily accessible manner, and addresses the use and application of these concepts Proven useful to philosophy students at both beginning and advanced levels

ThirdWay

ThirdWay PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 32

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Book Description
Monthly current affairs magazine from a Christian perspective with a focus on politics, society, economics and culture.

THE Journal

THE Journal PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Computer-assisted instruction
Languages : en
Pages : 594

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Book Description


Injustice (revised edition)

Injustice (revised edition) PDF Author: Dorling, Danny
Publisher: Policy Press
ISBN: 1447300319
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 303

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Book Description
REVISED EDITION NOW AVAILABLE New Foreword by Richard Wilkinson & Kate Pickett, authors of The spirit level Afterword by Daniel Dorling updates developments in the last year Few would dispute that we live in an unequal and unjust world, but what causes this inequality to persist? Leading social commentator and academic Danny Dorling claims in this timely book that, as the five social evils identified by Beveridge are gradually being eradicated, they are being replaced by five new tenets of injustice, viz: elitism is efficient; exclusion is necessary; prejudice is natural; greed is good and despair is inevitable. In an informal yet authoritative style, Dorling examines who is most harmed by these injustices and why, and what happens to those who most benefit. Hard-hitting and uncompromising in its call to action, this is essential reading for everyone concerned with social justice.