Social Analysis

Transforming Harry: The Adaptation of Harry Potter in the Transmedia Age is an edited volume of eight essays that look at how the cinematic versions of the seven Harry Potter novels represent an unprecedented cultural event in the history of cinematic adaptation.

The United States is addicted to crude oil. In this book, Andrew Price-Smith argues that this addiction has distorted the conduct of American foreign policy in profound and malign ways, resulting in interventionism, exploitation, and other illiberal behaviors that hide behind a facade of liberal internationalism. The symbiotic relationship between the state and the oil industry has produced deviations from rational foreign energy policy, including interventions in Iraq and elsewhere.

In his 2005 book Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (also subtitled How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive), author and multifaceted US scholar Jared M. Diamond clearly identifies five major factors that he says determine the success or failure of all human societies in all periods of history. Having first asked why societies collapse, Diamond explores various examples of failed societies, from the Norsemen of Scandinavia, who colonized Greenland in the early 10th century, to the 18th-century inhabitants of Easter Island.

The volume reviews modern US Supreme Court landmark cases relating to the topic of abortion. Cases covered include Roe v. Wade, Griswold v. Connecticut, City of Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v. Casey, Gonzales v. Carhart, and recent developments in Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson and Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health. The book reviews the decisions and rationale of the Court and how it has evolved. The oral arguments and opinion announcements from key cases are also included.

Published in 1996, Arjun Appadurai's Modernity at Large is an edited collection of earlier essays that had already made the Indian-born anthropologist an influential figure in his field of cultural anthropology. Appadurai here presents a theory of globalization, and suggests ways that other researchers can follow up on his ideas. Many of them continue to do so. For anthropologists, the book offered new ways of thinking about how communities are affected by globalization.

British-born American political activist Thomas Paine wrote Rights of Man in 1791 in response to Reflections on the Revolution in France, Edmund Burke's attack on the French Revolution. Burke was wary of tearing down old institutions of government. But Paine argued that revolution is acceptable - in fact, necessary - when government ignores the rights of its people. Not surprisingly, Rights of Man proved very popular in the newly liberated United States, selling over 100,000 copies.

Plato imagines a dinner party - a symposium - held in the Athens of the late fifth century BC. He invites seven important historical figures including the philosopher Socrates, the comic playwright Aristophanes, and the notorious military general Alcibiades. As entertainment, each guest gives a speech praising eros (human love or erotic desire). Plato then "collects" these seven speeches into Symposium.

Corporations are the most powerful entities on the planet. Unfortunately, many have had a long record of unprecedented and unbridled environmental degradation, social transgressions, and governance secrecy. Since by law they are beholden to their shareholders, some philanthropic trusts, pension funds, and other institutional investors have used shareholder advocacy to press for changes in corporate policy. But individual investors have largely been silent, thinking themselves powerless.

Fantasia of the Unconscious sheds invaluable light on the work of one of the most acclaimed and infamous modernists in literary history. No message stands alone. It is a relationship between the author and the audience, a snapshot of a living interaction, and it is only from this perspective that any classical piece can be fully understood. With this in mind, both the author and the climate of his time have been taken into account in a summary that precedes the narration of the full text.

This summary will tell you everything you need to know about Mueller's dense, exhaustive, and fascinating final report on Russian intereference in the 2016 election, the Trump campaign's involvement, and the President's potential attempts to obstruct justice. Save precious time by listening to this summary today!

Though written around 1513, more than 500 years ago, Italian diplomat Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince is still very influential. Listeners turn to it for its direct advice on the question of how to attain - and retain - power. Machiavelli's answer, in brief: use any means necessary to make sure the state survives. Given the changeable nature of politics, the strong ruler that Machiavelli describes may need to lie or cheat, deceive and, if necessary, resort to acts of violence - all the while maintaining an "image" of goodness.

In his 1986 book War Without Mercy, American historian John Dower examines Japanese-American relations during World War II and investigates links between popular culture, stereotypes, and extreme violence. He argues that it was the concept of racism - used equally by both sides - that underpinned the military conflict and led to a particularly brutal war in the Pacific and East Asia.

Even as recently as the 1920s the historical lack of great female writers was often considered as evidence of women's inferiority. Virginia Woolf disagreed. In her 1929 essay A Room of One's Own, she argues that creativity is impossible without privacy and freedom from financial worries - and that throughout history women have had neither. As a result, no tradition of great female writing existed to inspire women. Woolf's focus on the everyday suppression of women was a turning point.

In his 1807 work Phenomenology of Spirit, G. W. F. Hegel introduced the world to his philosophical system. His most influential work - and the culmination of the German Idealist movement begun in the late 18th century as a response to the works of Immanuel Kant - the book remains one of the undisputed classics of Western thought.

In The Desert Enigma: An Analysis of Occult Symbolism in Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, author, blogger, and independent investigator Isaac "The IlluminatiWatcher" Weishaupt reveals the hidden occult messages found in Paulo Coelho's novel The Alchemist. This analysis takes an honest look at the history of author Paulo Coelho and his degrees of separation from ceremonial magick, Aleister Crowley, Charles Manson, Kenneth Grant, Alejandro Jodorowsky, witchcraft, satanism, and more.

Kahneman uses this audiobook to explore how these decision-making processes work. He characterizes the type of rapid-fire, thoughtless reacting, that constitutes most thought as "System 1" thinking, and more reflective, strategic thinking as "System 2." Examples of System 1 managed functions include simple arithmetic, basic reading comprehension, and determining the relative distances and sizes of objects. System 2, by contrast, handles difficult tasks such as parallel parking, walking at a faster-than-normal speed.

In Winners Take All, Anand Giridharadas bursts the great myth that large corporations are the key drivers of social change and poverty reduction. He provides critical evidence that shows just how self-serving these large donations are, highlighting the behind-the-scenes machinations that keep the system skewed in favor of the wealthy. Giridharadas pulls no punches as he exposes the inner workings of what he calls MarketWorld, a reference to the philanthropic individuals and companies that make a killing off the misery of poor people.

Start Publishing Notes' Summary, Analysis, and Review of Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny includes a summary of the book, review, analysis & key takeaways, and detailed "About the Author" section. Preview: Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny is a primer on what people can do to resist tyranny. It also provides tools for recognizing tyranny and discusses historical background on how tyrannical governments have been established in the past.

In Tightrope: Americans Reaching for Hope, Pulitzer Prize winning journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn take a personal and harrowing look at the pervasive problems of poverty, drug abuse, and rising death rate in America through the stories of the people in America's forgotten towns. What they discover is a problem that goes far beyond unemployment or personal choice: they discover America's great social depression.

In Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are, Seth Stephens-Davidowitz cleverly manipulates Big Data to explore the dark underside of American consciousness. Using powerful new methodologies, the author analyzes anonymous Google searches across a wide range of subjects about which people tend to be secretive.