{"title":"Gary Alan Fine","description":"\u003cp\u003eGary Alan Fine's works explore the intricate dynamics of social groups and collective behaviour, offering insightful perspectives on how people connect and organise. His writing combines rigorous research with engaging narratives, making complex sociological concepts accessible to a broad audience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReaders will find thoughtful examinations of community, culture, and shared experiences, often framed within educational and reference contexts. Fine's books reveal the subtle forces that shape group interactions, inviting reflection on the social fabric around us.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"group-life-by-tim-hallett-9781509554140","title":"Group Life","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSociological analysis is replete with debates about “micro” and “macro,” individual and society, but all too often these miss the point: interacting groups are the hinge that connects the two. To understand how structures matter and how individuals navigate them, we must take groups and people in local communities seriously.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eGary Alan Fine and Tim Hallett skillfully argue that sociologists have the obligation to examine the role of small communities in the creation of both the interaction order and structural realities. With novel concepts and rich ethnographic examples, \u003cem\u003eGroup Life\u003c\/em\u003e describes how group commitments shape selves and society, emphasizing the importance of a meso-level approach to social organization. Fine and Hallett provide new models of identity, culture, conflict, and control, and consider how a network of groups can provide insight into extended communication channels and social media lattices. Ultimately, they show that, despite the importance of institutions and individuals, group life is the fundamental building block of community.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis timely book makes the case for a local sociology that includes sociality. It will be a welcome resource for students and sociologists, and a necessary call to action for the discipline as a whole.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47362612756716,"sku":"9781509554140","price":37.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/12563653482725.jpg?v=1772896582"},{"product_id":"fair-share-by-gary-alan-fine-9780226823836","title":"Fair Share","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA deeply researched ethnographic portrait of progressive senior activists in Chicago who demonstrate how a tiny public wields collective power to advocate for broad social change.\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIf you've ever been to a protest or been involved in a social movement, you have likely experienced a local culture, one with slogans, jargon, and social commitments. Though one might think of a cohort of youthful organisers when imagining protest culture, this powerful ethnography from esteemed sociologist Gary Alan Fine explores the world of senior citizens on the front lines of progressive protests, specifically those involved in a locally prominent activist group founded in the 1970s.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhile seniors are a notoriously important—and historically conservative—political cohort, \"Chicago Seniors Together\" is a decidedly leftist organisation, inspired by the model of Saul Alinsky. The group advocates for social issues, such as affordable housing and healthcare, that affect all sectors of society but take on a particular urgency in the lives of seniors. Seniors connect and mobilise around their distinct experiences but do so in service of concerns that extend beyond themselves. Not only do these seniors experience social issues \u003ci\u003eas seniors\u003c\/i\u003e—but they use their age as a dramatic visual in advocating for political change.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eFair Share\u003c\/i\u003e, Fine brings readers into the vital world of an overlooked political group, describing how a “tiny public” mobilises their group's demands for broad social change. In this process, he shows that senior citizen activists are particularly savvy about using age to their advantage in social movements. After all, what could be more attention-grabbing than a group of passionate older people determinedly shuffling through snowy streets with canes, in wheelchairs, and holding walkers to demand healthcare equity, risking their own health in the process?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47460826874092,"sku":"9780226823836","price":61.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780226823836-fair-share.jpg?v=1774952954"},{"product_id":"joy-to-the-world-by-gary-alan-fine-9780226850870","title":"Joy to the World","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA celebration and exploration of the idea of pleasure and the unique role it serves in bringing individuals and communities together.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere are innumerable ways to take pleasure in life: a bite of cake in the late afternoon, a walk in the warm springtime air after a long winter, a listen to the opening chords of your favourite song. But each of these pleasures is transformed by the presence of others. In \u003cem\u003eJoy to the World\u003c\/em\u003e, sociologist Gary Alan Fine takes up one of the major themes of his lifetime of work: pleasure. Fine gives us the conceptual basis for a sociology of pleasure: a joyous view of the world that, at times, inspires us, through expectations of interaction, shared cultures, and routine practices that make life worth living in community.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFine focuses on the impact of group relations as the platform for satisfaction, emphasising the power of communities of practice. While pleasures may be enjoyed alone, the pleasure that occurs in social spaces performs a unique function in our personal and social lives; they help us understand ourselves as individuals who are part of a group. What is pleasurably transgressive in one context might seem inappropriate, cruel, or just plain nonsensical in another, and these shades of difference serve to solidify the bonds of the group.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eJoy to the World\u003c\/em\u003e urges us to understand what draws us together as well as to appreciate what drives us apart. Our joys, as well as our challenges, help us to be a part of a caring, conscientious, committed community.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67807632195820,"sku":"9780226850870","price":112.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/de2337091c89439252713b4ab439ea51.jpg?v=1792622794"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/gary-alan-fine.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}