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Doing Cultural Geography
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Doing Cultural Geography

First Edition
Edited by:

March 2002 | 248 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd
DOING CULTURAL GEOGRAPHY Edited by PAMELA SHURMER-SMITH, University of Portsmouth Doing Cultural Geography is an introduction to cultural geography that integrates theoretical discussion with applied examples: the emphasis throughout is on doing geography. Recognising that many undergraduates have difficulty with both theory and methods courses, the text explains the theory informing cultural geography and encourages students to engage directly with theory in practice. It emphasises what can be done with humanist, Marxist, poststructuralist, feminist, and postcolonial theory, showing that this is the most effective way to engage with the theoretical literature. Twenty short chapters are organized in sections on theory, topic selection, methodology, interpretation, and presentation. The text is punctuated throughout with questions, suggestions for activities, and short sample extracts from the academic literature, chosen to exemplify the subject of the chapter and to stimulate further reading. Chapters conclude with glossaries and suggestions for further reading. Doing Cultural Geography will be used in project work - from seminar-based activities to the planning stages of undergraduate research projects. It will be essential reading for students in modules in cultural geography, foundation courses in human geography, as well as theory and methods modules. Features and Benefits:  most pedagogically informed teaching text on cultural geography available  integrates theory with practice

Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Introduction
 
PART ONE: THEORY INTO PRACTICE
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
The Trouble with Theory
Carol Ekinsmyth and Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Humanistic and Behaviouralist Geography
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Marx and After
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Poststructuralist Cultural Geography
Carol Ekinsmyth
Feminist Cultural Geography
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Postcolonial Geographies
 
PART TWO: DOING IT
Katy Bennett, Carol Ekinsmyth and Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Selecting Topics for Study
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Methods and Methodology
Tim Brown
Extensive Methods
Using Secondary Data

 
Kevin Hannam
Using Archives
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Reading Texts
Katy Bennett
Participant Observation
Katy Bennett
Interviews and Focus Groups
Louis Shurmer-Smith and Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Field Observation
Looking at Paris

 
Carol Ekinsmyth
Feminist Methodology
 
PART THREE: MAKING SENSE
Kevin Hannam
Coping with Archival and Textual Data
Katy Bennett and Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Handling Case Studies
Katy Bennett and Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Representation of Research
Creating a Text

 
Pamela Shurmer-Smith
Concluding Thoughts

`This is a much-needed introduction to the practice of cultural geography which demystifies the research process and enriches our understanding and experience of the world. Written with conviction and good humour, Doing Cultural Geography is a hands-on guide that students will love, taking them through the various stages of selecting a topic, drawing on different theoretical frameworks to ask rigorous research questions, choosing appropriate methods, putting them into practice, interpreting the results and writing them up. Drawing on the authors' own research, Doing Cultural Geography is an invitation to take the insights of cultural geography beyond the classroom and to use of experience of everyday life to enrich the research process. It is an invitation that readers will find hard to resist' - Professor Peter Jackson, University of Sheffield

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