Tony Blackshaw

In this provocative new book, Tony Blackshaw argues that Leisure Studies is in a quiet but deep state of crisis. The twenty-first century has brought profound change to all aspects of society, including a plurality of new leisure worlds, and traditional concepts of Leisure Studies fail to capture this richness. This book aims to re-invigorate Leisure Studies by revealing and unpacking these leisure worlds, thereby changing the way we think about leisure and the way we do Leisure Studies. Both trivial and serious in its implications, it is precisely this paradox that makes leisure such a fascinating subject of study. Re-Imagining Leisure Studies presents a new and radical set of methodological rules for studying leisure trends and cultures in contemporary society. It discusses the critical issues that underpin recent developments in leisure theory and explores the key themes of social class, community, politics, freedom and globalization. Marking a turning point in the reception and understanding of Leisure Studies, this book is vital reading for all students and scholars with a social scientific interest in leisure.

Re-Imagining Leisure Studies

Tim Crabbe

The everyday makeup of contemporary sport is increasingly characterised by a perceived explosion of 'deviance' - violence, drug taking, racism, homophobia, misogyny, corruption and excess. Whereas once these behaviours may have been subject to the moral judgments of authority, in the face of dramatic socio-cultural change they become more a matter of populist consumer gaze. In addressing these developments this book provides a new and insightful approach toward the study of 'deviance' in the realm of sport. New Perspectives in Sport and 'Deviance' awakens the sociology of sport to the possibilities of re-imagining 'deviance' and offers an evocative approach which will appeal both to academics and students in the field of sociology of sport and sociology of deviance.

Consumption, Peformativity and Social Control

New Perspectives on Sport and 'Deviance'

Zygmunt Bauman has written more than seventy books over five decades, most taking a single subject and finding doors to open it in all directions. His work is an essential reference point in sociology, but it is time that everyone caught up with him. In this book Tony Blackshaw doesn't just tell us that Bauman is a massive star in sociology, he demonstrates why his light shines brighter than that of almost any other intellectual figure in the world today by offering his readers deep insights into the 'Bauman Effect'. The new Bauman reader is two books in one. On the one hand, it is a critical introduction to a vital and inspiring sociologist who stands against the predictable in 'majority' sociology to draw out daring and new insights from which we can all learn. On the other, it is an anthology of his work chosen with the specific aim of guiding readers, whether undergraduates, postgraduates, academics or general readers to Bauman's original way of 'thinking sociologically', which is as irresistible as the 'liquid' metaphor that guides it.

Thinking sociologically in liquid modern times

The new Bauman reader

This timely book provides the definitive concise introduction to the phenomenon of Zygmunt Bauman. After introducing the man, his major influences and his special way of 'thinking sociologically', author Blackshaw traces the development of Bauman's project by identifying and explaining the major shifts of emphasis in his work – the break with Marxism and the postmodern 'turn', and the subsequent refocusing on 'liquid' modernity – as well as offering a clear and accessible guide to the key conceptual hinges which move the reader on. This book, the only concise introduction to Bauman's work on the market, goes on to explain the importance of the full range of persistent themes concerning Bauman, dealing specifically with individualization, freedom, identity, community, social control, consumption and waste, building a penetrating understanding of why these issues matter for this Key Sociologist. Bauman's ideas have impacted beyond sociology into criminology, political theory, cultural studies, leisure studies and so forth, and have also now penetrated outside the walls of the academy into social policy, welfare reform, social work and politics. Making use of pedagogical features such as boxed sections, chapter summaries, an annotated bibliography and links to further reading, this well-written text assumes no prior familiarity with Bauman's work and will appeal to anyone in any of these fields wishing to get acquainted with the ideas of one of the world's most wide-ranging thinkers.

Zygmunt Bauman

Zygmunt Bauman is one of the leading social and political thinkers of the modern world. He is a classic thinker in the sense that his books possess the two qualities laid out by the founding fathers of the social sciences - the moral basis and the artistic touch - but his greatest interest is in showing how personal troubles are inextricably connected to public issues. He turns his critical eye on just about any social issue, event or institution from shopping to the state and from sex to social inequality. To read Bauman is to see how the rhythms of everyday life may be turned into an erudite and critical practice that burns itself into the sociological imagination. Bauman is an immensely prolific writer and his early work, in particular, can be very demanding of the reader. This book presents a wide range of important, lively and engaging readings, aiming to capture the originality of Bauman's special way of doing sociology and all the complexity of his core ideas, in a way that connects with twenty-first century minds. It is an ideal student introduction to Bauman's work, offering a mix of book chapters and essay discussions, excerpts from interviews and snapshots on life from Bauman's pocket books. The ultimate aim of the reader is to show students how to 'think sociologically' with Bauman. Organized in four parts, with a substantive introduction by the editor, the volume closes with an epilogue from Bauman himself.

The Bloomsbury Bauman Reader

Reader in the Department of Sport Tony Blackshaw

This timely book provides the definitive concise introduction to Zygmunt Bauman. A well-written text, it assumes no prior knowledge of his work and will appeal to those wishing to explore the ideas of one of the world's most wide-ranging thinkers.

Zygmunt Bauman Textbook

This book presents a wide range of important, lively and engaging readings, aiming to capture the originality of Bauman's special way of doing sociology and all the complexity of his core ideas, in a way that connects with twenty-first century minds.

Thinking Sociologically in Liquid Modern Times

The New Bauman Reader

Taking a fresh look the history of northern working-class life in the second half of the twentieth century, this book turns to the concept of generation and generational change. The author explores Zygmunt Bauman's bold vision of modern historical change as the shift from solid modernity to liquid modernity.

The Pre-History and After-Life of the Inbetweener Generation

Working-Class Life in Northern England, 1945-2010

This landmark publication brings together some of the most perceptive commentators of the present moment to explore core ideas and cutting edge developments in the field of Leisure Studies. It offers important new insights into the dynamics of the transformation of leisure in contemporary societies, tracing the emergent issues at stake in the discipline and examining Leisure Studies’ fundamental connections with cognate disciplines such as Sociology, Cultural Studies, History, Sport Studies and Tourism. This book contains original work from key scholars across the globe, including those working outside the Leisure Studies mainstream. It showcases the state of the art of contemporary Leisure Studies, covering key topics and key thinkers from the psychology of leisure to leisure policy, from Bourdieu to Baudrillard, and suggests that leisure in the 21st century should be understood as centring on a new ‘Big Seven’ (holidays, drink, drugs, sex, gambling, TV and shopping). No other book has gone as far in redefining the identity of the discipline of Leisure Studies, or in suggesting how the substantive ideas of Leisure Studies need to be rethought. The Routledge Handbook of Leisure Studies should therefore be the intellectual guide of first choice for all scholars, academics, researchers and students working in this subject area.

Tony Blackshaw

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