Race, religion, language, culture, and national character are full of contradictions. Brazil, the largest country in South America, embodies so much paradox that it defies neat description. This book will help students and general readers dispel stereotypes of Brazil and begin to understand what country's "bigness" means in terms of its land, people, history, society, and cultural expressions. This is the only authoritative yet accessible volume on Brazil that surveys a wide range of important topics, from geography, to social customs, art, architecture, and more. Highlights include discussions of the fluid definitions of race, rituals of candomble, the importance of extended family networks, beach culture, and soccer madness. A chronology and glossary supplement the text.

This book discusses erotic and magical goddesses and heroines in several ancient cultures, from the Near East and Asia, and throughout ancient Europe; in prehistoric and early historic iconography, their magical qualities are often indicated by a magical dance or stance. It is a look at female display figures both cross-culturally and cross-temporally, through texts and iconography, beginning with figures depicted in very early Neolithic Anatolia, early and middle Neolithic southeast Europe--Bulgaria, Romania, and Serbia--continuing through the late Neolithic in East Asia, and into early historic Greece, India, and Ireland, and elsewhere across the world. These very similar female figures were depicted in Anatolia, Europe, Southern Asia, and East Asia, in a broad chronological sweep, beginning with the pre-pottery Neolithic, ca. 9000 BCE, and existing from the beginning of the second millennium of this era up to the present era. This book demonstrates the extraordinary similarities, in a broad geographic range, of depictions and descriptions of magical female figures who give fertility and strength to the peoples of their cultures by means of their magical erotic powers. This book uniquely contains translations of texts which describe these ancient female figures, from a multitude of Indo-European, Near Eastern, and East Asian works, a feat only possible given the authors' formidable combined linguistic expertise in over thirty languages. The book contains many photographs of these geographically different, but functionally and artistically similar, female figures. Many current books (academic and otherwise) explore some of the female figures the authors discuss in their book, but such a wide-ranging cross-cultural and cross-temporal view of this genre of female figures has never been undertaken until now. The "sexual" display of these female figures reflects the huge numinosity of the prehistoric divine feminine, and of her magical genitalia. The functions of fertility and apotropaia, which count among the functions of the early historic display and dancing figures, grow out of this numinosity and reflect the belief in and honoring of the powers of the ancient divine feminine.

Though nearly everyone is familiar with the great mythological figures such as Hercules, Icarus and Medusa, readers may wonder what relevance these ancient tales hold for them. This unique reference book brings mythology to life for students by exploring the connections between ancient myths and contemporary culture. The delightful introductory essay sets the tone, with its overview of the myriad areas of human endeavors that have been influenced by mythology including the arts, science, psychology, language and literature, consumer products and other aspects of popular culture. The user-friendly volume is comprised of 50 narrative essays, that offer a lively retelling of the myth, and then trace the cultural connections. Readers will discover, for example, the fascinating derivation of Freudian psychoanalysis from the myth of Oedipus. Fans of popular film and fiction may be surprised to learn the mythological inspiration for works like Beauty and the Beast, The Matrix, or Michael Crichton's Eaters of the Dead. This engrossing book is enhanced with 25 original illustrations. Five fact-filled appendices offer glossaries and interesting mythological etymologies of commonplace words in nature, science, and everyday consumer products like Nike shoes and Olympus cameras. Whether for research or pure enjoyment, this accessible and informative book reveals the many unrecognized references to mythology that impact our lives.

This book is another example of the New Thought movement where the author looks at the law of attrac-tion in the sense of thought with the respect of the power of mind. Atkinson points out the similarities between the law of gravitation and the mental law of attraction. He ex-plains that thought vibrations are as real as those manifesting as light, heat, magnetism and electricity. The difference is in the vibratory rate which also ex-plains the fact that thought vibrations cannot usually be perceived by our five senses. The author, rather skillfully, argues that there are huge gaps in the spectrum of light and sound vibrations, wide enough to include other worlds. It is logical that these activities would be perceived by sense organs at-tuned to them. Increasingly sophisticated scientific instruments are able to register more and more of these hidden frequencies.

Latin American fashion's recent gain in popularity can be seen most obviously in mass-market ranges throughout the industrialized West. From the tango-inspired dress of Argentina and guerrilla chic in downtown Buenos Aires to swimwear on Copacabana Beach and the rainbow that adorns Mayan women, Latin America has long been a source of inspiration for designers throughout the world. Until now, however, the pivotal role played by dress in this region has surprisingly been overlooked. This book is a long overdue assessment of Latin America's influence on global fashion. The authors examine the significance of textiles and dress to Latin American culture and the reasons behind it from fashion history to popular culture and the (re)making of traditional garments, such as the poncho, the guayabera and maguey-fiber sandals. This book also considers fashion icons such as Frida Kahlo and Eva Peron, women who have been worshipped and transformed into marketable symbols of exoticism and passion, as well as the key role that dress played in their rise to celebrity on the international stage. Providing a first and definitive overview of Latin American fashion, this book is essential reading for anyone interested in Latin American cultural studies or fashion history. Winner of the 2006 Arthur P. Whitaker Prize, awarded by the Middle Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies

"At sea, when the nets are out and the pipes are lit, then will some ancient hoarder of tales become loquacious, telling his histories to the tune of the creaking of the boats. Holy-eve night, too, is a great time, and in old days many tales were to be heard at wakes. But the priest have set their faces against wakes. . . ." From the celebrated poet, William Butler Yeats, a volume of folk and fairy tales to stir the Irish soul.

Pasta, cappuccino, olive oil Italian food culture is a prominent feature of Western society in our cafes, restaurants and homes. But what is the history of Italian cuisine? And where do we get our notions about Italian food? Garlic and Oil is the first comprehensive history of food habits in modern Italy. Chronicling the period from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day, the author argues that politics dramatically affected the nature of Italian cuisine and food habits. Contrary to popular belief, the Italian diet was inadequate and unchanging for many decades. Drawing on the writings of scientific professionals, domestic economists, government officials, and consumers, the author shows how the miserable diet of so many Italians became the subject of political debate and eventually, the target of government intervention. As successive regimes liberal, fascist, democratic struggled with the question of how to improve peoples eating habits, their actions purposefully and inadvertently affected what and how much Italians ate, shaping not only the foundations of Italian cuisine, but also the nature of Italian identity. Garlic and Oil is a popular national food history that offers a new perspective on the history of consumerism and food studies by examining how political change affects food consumption habits.

British fashion is characterized by oppositions: punk versus pageantry, anarchy versus monarchy, Cool Britannia versus Rule Britannia. Why has British fashion come to be so contradictory? How are these contradictions employed to 'sell British'? What do they mean for consumers who 'buy British'? Through an examination of iconic fashion companies Paul Smith and Mulberry, The National Fabric provides telling insights into the culture of contemporary fashion and the dilemmas of 'going global'. Goodrum argues that 'Britishness' is characterized less through a particular look than through its ambiguities. She shows how the apparently straightforward and economically-driven process of globalizing British fashion is, in fact, far more culturally nuanced and locally embedded than has previously been suggested. In examining the interplay between fashion and Britishness, Goodrum redresses a longstanding omission in fashion theory, which has been preoccupied with class, gender and race rather than with national identity.

Transnational movements of people, cultural objects, images and identities have played a vital role in creating an informal global network for African fashion - from clothing designers and tailors to dyers and jewellery makers. This book traces the changing meanings, aesthetics and histories of the thriving informal African fashion network through its multicultural cross-roads of Los Angeles, Kenya and Senegal.
In African communities, designers compete with each other to survive and often travel long distances in search of new markets. Such competition and bridging of cultures fuels creativity and innovation. From adapting western fashion magazines to combining 'ethnic' designs with dramatic new colours and techniques, artisans weave a variety of borrowed influences into their traditional practices. Rabine explores the interrelationship and tensions that exist between these popular and mass cultures, including the ways that global circulation threatens to destroy artisanal skills. With its unique insights into the operation and ethics of these global networks, this book offers a timely contribution to contemporary studies of fashion, transnationalism and globalization.

This encylopedic study illuminates the hidden web of connections between the Victorian fascinations with the fairies and the dominant obsessions of the larger culture. Drawing on anthropological, folkloric, historical and medical sources, Silver anatomizes a world of strange beings -real and imaginary - who infiltrate the literary and visual masterpieces of the era.

Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World by William Walker Atkinson

In this New Thought classic, Atkinson looks at the law of attraction in the thought world. He points out the similarities between the law of gravitation and the mental law of attraction. He explains that thought vibrations are as real as those manifesting as light, heat, magnetism and electricity. The difference is in the vibratory rate which also explains the fact that thought vibrations cannot usually be perceived by our 5 senses.

Contents: Law of attraction in the thought world; Thought-waves and their power of reproduction; About the mind; Mind building; Secret of the will; How to become immune to injurious thought attraction; Transmutation of negative thought; Law of mental control; Asserting the life force; Training the habit mind; Psychology of the emotions; Developing new brain cells; Attractive power-desire force; Law, not chance.

Your Invisible Power by Genevieve Behrend

This is a really inspiring book. It gets you focused on your dreams and goals with very simple to understand directions. I encourage everyone to read and apply the information with a spirit of enthusiasm and watch your life change

Dandies: Fashion and Finesse in Art and Culture considers the visual languages, politics, and poetics of personal appearance. Dandyism has been most closely associated with influential caucasian Western men-about-town, epitomized by the 19th century style-setting of Oscar Wilde and by Tom Wolfe's white suits. The essays collected here, however, examine the spectacle and workings of dandyism to reveal that these were not the only dandies. On the contrary, art historians, literary and cultural historians, and anthropologists identify unrecognized dandies flourishing among early 19th century Native Americans, in Soviet Latvia, in Africa, throughout the African-American diaspora, among women, and in the art world.

Moving beyond historical and fictional accounts of dandies, this volume juxtaposes theoretical models with evocative images and descriptions of clothing in order to link sartorial self-construction with artistic, social, and political self-invention. Taking into consideration the vast changes in thinking about identity in the academy, Dandies provides a compelling study of dandyism's destabilizing aesthetic enterprise.

Contributors: Jennifer Blessing, Susan Fillin-Yeh, Rhonda Garelick, Joe Lucchesi, Kim Miller, Robert E. Moore, Richard J. Powell, Carter Ratcliffe, and Mark Allen Svede.

This all-encompassing volume offers a comprehensive look at the contemporary culture that defines this Southeast Asian country of Laos, examining everything from Buddhist traditions to Laotian cuisine. Coverage includes a brief history of the nation followed by in-depth narrative chapters on religion, literature, visual and performing arts, fashion, gender roles, everyday social customs, and more. Through illustrative descriptions of daily life, students will learn how traditional customs have shaped contemporary life in Laos today. Few other resources provide the same extensive coverage on current culture in Laos. Ideal for high school students as well as general readers, "Culture and Customs of Laos" is a must-have for all library shelves.

The Southeast Asian country of Laos, one of the world's last-standing communist nations, has often been overshadowed in the international newsroom by its more dominant neighbors, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Among one of the most bombed countries in the world, one that suffered much during and after the Vietnam War, Laos has been struggling economically and politically for decades. In spite of these challenges, a rich, beautiful culture has survived in Laos. This exhaustive volume offers a comprehensive look at the contemporary culture that defines this seemingly quiet country, from Buddhism to Laotian cuisine. Coverage includes a brief history of the nation followed by in-depth narrative chapters on religion, literature, visual and performing arts, fashion, gender roles, everyday social customs, and more. Through illustrative descriptions of daily life, students will learn how traditional customs have shaped contemporary life in Laos today. Few other resources provide the same extensive coverage on current culture in Laos. Ideal for high school students as well as general readers, "Culture and Customs of Laos" is a must-have for all library shelves.