Religion and Popular Culture in America - 3rd Edition by Bruce David Forbes & Jeffrey H Mahan (Paperback)

About the Book

"Since 2000, Religion and Popular Culture in America has been one [of the] standard books used in teaching this area of study. Modestly updated in 2005, it continues to be taught in colleges, universities and theological schools across the continent. The basic four-part structure of Religion and Popular Culture in America remains sound and is a feature that appeals to many who have taught the volume. Section One, Religion in Popular Culture, examines the way traditional religious symbols, narratives, and forms of religious practice appear in popular culture. Section Two, Popular Culture in Religion, considers how religion takes on and is reshaped by styles and values of popular culture. Section Three, Popular Culture as Religion, explores the ways that aspects of popular culture and their reception might be considered to be forms of religion. Section Four, Religion and Popular Culture in Dialogue, introduces religiously based critiques of popular culture and ways that popular culture articulates common critiques of religion. The third edition maintains the structure and basic length of the current edition and retains Forbes' introductory framework and update versions of key essay. But they replace many of the more dated subjects with new material drawing on more contemporary examples. A concluding essay by Mahan organizes key insights from the essays and relates them to the theories of popular culture illuminated in the introduction"--Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

The connection between popular culture and religion is an enduring part of American life. With seventy-five percent new content, the third edition of this multifaceted and popular collection has been revised and updated throughout to provide greater religious diversity in its topics and address critical developments in the study of religion and popular culture.

Ideal for classroom use, this expanded volume

• gives increased attention to the implications of digital culture and the increasingly interactive quality of popular culture
• provides a framework to help students understand and appreciate the work in diverse fields, methods, and perspectives
• contains an updated introduction, discussion questions, and other instructional tools

From the Back Cover

PRAISE FOR RELIGION AND POPULAR CULTURE IN AMERICA

"A solid introduction to the dialogue between the disciplines of cultural studies and religion."--Religious Studies Review

"You have in your hands an indispensable guide to thinking about popular culture. Forbes and Mahan show how our entertainments are not just things we consume but objects that define how we express our political sentiments and social identity. Funny, fresh, and sharp--every essay is a gem."--Kathryn Lofton, Yale University

"The revised edition of this groundbreaking volume demonstrates how popular culture remains vital to the study of religion and how insights from the practices and narratives of religion in turn illuminate popular culture. A thorough overview for students and researchers alike."--S. Brent Plate, author of Religion and Film: Cinema and the Re-Creation of the World

About the Author

Bruce David Forbes is Professor of Religious Studies at Morningside College. He is the author of Christmas: A Candid History and America's Favorite Holidays: Candid Histories.

Jeffrey H. Mahan holds the Ralph E. and Norma E. Peck Chair in Religion and Public Communication at the Iliff School of Theology. His books include Religion, Media, and Culture: An Introduction, Shared Wisdom, and American Television Genres.