Language acquisition is a human endeavor par excellence. As children, all human beings learn to understand and speak at least one language: their mother tongue. It is a process that seems to take place without any obvious effort. Second language learning, particularly among adults, causes more difficulty. The purpose of this series is to compile a collection of high-quality monographs on language acquisition. The series serves the needs of everyone who wants to know more about the problem of language acquisition in general and/or about language acquisition in specific contexts.

Complex patterns of acculturation are revealed in the most comprehensive ethnographic study of contemporary French immigrants in the United States. Written by a French-born American anthropologist who has insider status among French Americans, "The French in the United States" offers a fresh look at the histories and experiences of French immigrants. In the foreign-born generation, a high degree of social integration into American society co-exists with the maintenance of a French identity which manifests itself in the areas of language, culture, and perceptions. The French heritage does not usually endure past the second generation, however, because its maintenance within the family is not adequately supported by collective efforts, due to a lack of cohesiveness among French-born individuals who have become permanent immigrants.

A number of factors account for the foregoing: the small number of French natives in the United States, their scattered geographical distribution, the absence of spatially defined communities populated by direct immigrants from France, and a very high rate of intermarriage. Another important factor is the primarily individual nature of migration from France to this country since the last half of the 20th century, and a highly developed sense of self-direction in those who stay permanently. Their French identity must be regarded as cultural rather than ethnic: it is tied to a distant homeland, rather than to a group with territorial, institutional, and organizational identity in the United States. Lindenfeld delves into the makings of this French identity and distinguishes French immigrants from other Americans.

This book offers a complete overview of the contributions of U.S. Latinos to American popular culture and examines the emergence of the U.S. Latino identity. According to the 2010 Census, Latinos represent more than 16 percent of the total population and are the largest and fastest-growing minority group in the United States. Their vast contributions to popular culture are visible in nearly every aspect of American life and are as diverse as the countries and cultures of origin with which Latinos identify themselves. This book provides a historical overview of the developments in U.S. Latino culture and highlights the most recent expressions of Latino life in American popular culture. With coverage of topics like Latino representations in television, radio, film, and theater; U.S. Latino literature and art; Latino sports stars in baseball, basketball, boxing, football, and soccer; and contemporary pop music; this book will appeal to general readers and be a useful and engaging resource for high school and college students. The work examines the cultural ties that U.S. Latinos maintain with their country of origin or that of their ancestors, explains why language is a critical cultural marker for Latinos, and identifies how Latinos are changing American popular culture. Insightful information on U.S. Latino identity issues and prevalent cultural stereotypes is also included.

View the Table of Contents.
Read the Introduction.

Winner of a 2006 American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation

"Ferraro maintains a breezy, journalistic style that has produced an easy and entertaining read. His work may give hope to people of other ethnicities who presently suffer from isolation and alienation on the part of the general American public."
--"Multicultural Review"

"Ferraro traces the 'evolution and persistence' of an identifiable Italian American identity, from the time of widespread Italian immigration in the late 1800s through popular mediated portrayals of Italian Americans such as those found in "The Sopranos" television series. The book is an important contribution not only to Italian American studies, but to the understanding of ethnicity in the 21st-century US."
--"Choice"

aFeeling Italian is a smart book, one that makes the reader think beyond the usual ways of looking at whatas Italian about the US.a
-- American Book Review

"This inspired, sophisticated, provoking book should command the attention of anybody interested in American Italianness in particular or the cultural consequences of ethnicity in general. Joseph Stella and Frank Sinatra, Maria Barbella and Giancarlo Esposito, Madonna and the good people who brought you the Corleones and Sopranos--they and others appear here, often seen in startlingly fresh ways, as creators and exemplars of the aesthetic Tom Ferraro calls 'feeling Italian.' Wise, funny, contagiously enthusiastic, Ferraro takes us far beyond the narrow pieties of the identity police or anti-defamation types as he traces the development of a widely accessible American cultural style that still bearsthe marks of distinctively Italian ways of making do and making sense."
--Carlo Rotella, author of "Good With Their Hands: Boxers, Bluesmen, and Other Characters from the Rust Belt"

aOriginal and deeply right. There is no other book that digs so deeply into the matter at hand, and does so with such eloquence and ferocity of intellect.a
--Jay Parini, author of "Passage to Liberty: The Story of Italian Immigration and the Rebirth of America"

"The lesson that each of us must choose of the narratives carefully: You can let the Olive Garden sum you up; or you can, like Ferraro, remind yourself that it'sj ust another version of mass-culture reductivism and stereotyping. Being Italian (or Polish or Jewish or African American), Ferraro reminds us, is not about the all-you-can eat breadsticks."
--"Duke Magazine"

Southern Italian emigration to the United States peaked a full century ago--descendents are now fourth and fifth generation, dispersed from their old industrial neighborhoods, professionalized, and fully integrated into the amelting pot.a Surely the social historians are right: Italian Americans are fading into the twilight of their ethnicity. So, why is the American imagination enthralled by "The Sopranos," and other portraits of Italian-ness?

Italian American identity, now a mix of history and fantasy, flesh-and-bone people and all-too-familiar caricature, still has something to teach us, including why each of us, as citizens of the U.S. twentieth century and its persisting cultures, are to some extent already Italian. Contending that the media has become the primary vehicle of Italian sensibilities, Ferraro explores a series of books, movies, paintings, andrecords in ten dramatic vignettes. Featured cultural artifacts run the gamut, from the paintings of Joseph Stella and the music of Frank Sinatra to "The Godfather"as enduring popularity and Madonnaas Italian background. In a prose style as vivid as his subjects, Ferraro fashions a sardonic love song to the art and iconography of Italian America.

Haiti is a country which, until the earthquake of 2010, remained largely outside the focus of world interest and outside the important international historical currents during its existence as a free nation. The nineteenth century was the decisive period in Haitian history, serving to shape the class structure, the political tradition and the economic system. During most of this period, Haiti had little contact with both its immediate neighbours and the industrialised nations of the world, which led to the development of Haiti as a peasant nation. This title, first published in 1979, examines the factors responsible for the poverty of the Haitian peasant, by using both traditional economic models as well as a multidisciplinary approach incorporating economics and other branches of social science. The analysis deals primarily with the Haitian peasant economy from the early 1950s to the early 1970s, examining in depth the explanations for the secular tendency of rural per capita incomes to decline during this period.

Through an examination of the critical junctures in postcolonial Sri Lankan politics, this book refines and advances our understanding of the dynamics underpinning violent and nonviolent "ethnic" conflict. It enables us to understand how the ebb and flow of relations within ethnic groups affects relations between groups, for good or for ill.

The Chinese state reaches out to ethnic communities in three different channels of autonomy, ethnicity, and poverty. However, each of these channels designates a submissive position to ethnic citizenship. Amidst theoretical uncertainty on how the state has affected local communities, ethnic minorities can develop subjectivity. Through this, they can sincerely participate in the state's policy agenda, conveniently incorporate the state into the ethnic identity, give feedback to the state within the framework of official discourse, or hide behind the state to evade ethnic identification. Rather than finding a life outside the state, the ethnic communities can, in one way or another, position themselves inside the state.

A rare collection of essays by leading Chinese and Russian Central Asian specialists. The contributors address the problems and challenges posed by the resurgence of Central Asia to China and Russia. Both Countries are in search of a post communist and post cold war order. The editors explore uncertain transformations in Central Asia and their implications for Chinese and Russian foreign policies and speculate on the possible outcome of the current search for a regional order.

This book gathers into one volume the most provocative philosophical writing on race produced by the luminaries of the European Enlightenment. There is no anthology that has so focused itself on exploring through primary texts the alliance between philosophy, anthropology and race.

It is an attempt to show, through primary texts on matters of race, the "dark" sides of the Enlightenment philosophy. The book is an indispensable tool for students and researchers interested in exploring the race-inflected nature of eighteenth-century philosophy and science on the one hand, and the systematics relations between philosophy and anthropology and race, on the other.

The series was designed in response to the research experiences accumulated by the Center for Research on Antisemitism of Berlin Technical University since 1982. The first two volumes presented normative thinking on the social and psychological mechanisms effective in antisemitism. The present volum

First published in 1989, The Dictionary of Contemporary Politics of South America provides a guide to the most important organizations, figures, events and themes in the contemporary politics of South America. The countries covered are Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, Suriname and Guyana, as well as the French overseas department of French Guiana. Central American and Caribbean affairs are also touched on when they have implications for South American politics. Taking a broad definition of the term 'contemporary', the authors isolate the strands of recent history which have a continual influence on political thinking. Although first published in 1989, this book will be a valuable resource for journalists, students, diplomats, business people, and anyone else who is interested in the politics of this richly diverse continent.

In his book, Gonzales provides snapshots of true-life accounts to eloquently describe the world in which he lived - from the humble beginnings of his childhood, to his life as a Drug Kingpin, to his transformation in State Prison. He goes into detail of how he perfected the manufacturing and distribution of amphetamines during the mid to late 1980's. His escapades include run-ins with infamous drug lords and mad men of various underground organizations. And of course, he discusses the key people involved in helping him rise from a Latino Texan minion to a convicted Drug Kingpin.

Combining theoretical analyses with case studies, this book increases understanding of the internationalization, diffusion and escalation of ethnic conflict. The essays stand at the nexus of comparative politics and international relations, examining the influence on ethnic conflict of the weakening of state institutional structures, the role of non-state regional and international actors, changes in the ethnic balance of power, and the degree of economic, social, and cultural integration within the regional or global system. The variety of approaches provides useful analytical tools for students, while the diversity of cases from different regions gives the reader a sense of the scope of such problems.

Anyone interested in Native American lifeways will want to pore over Notes on a Lost Flute. Hardy brings together his expertise in forestry, horticulture, and environmental science to tell us about New England when its primary inhabitants were the native Wabanaki tribes. With experience in teaching adults and children, Hardy has written this book in an entertaining and accessible style, making it of interest and useful to adults and students alike.

'A pioneering and important study.' David Denver, University of Lancaster 'This study is long overdue. It will inevitably attract a great deal of interest.' James Mitchell, University of Sheffield 'The debates on ethnic minority electoral participation have been bedevilled by methodological problems and political disputes. Shamit Saggar's sensitive analysis and careful use of the British Election Study data make this an important and authoritative contribution to the understanding of ethnic minority politics." Zig Layton-Henry, University of Warwick The central concern of "Race and Representation" is the political integration of Britain's ethnic minorities. The book provides a direct and extensive comparison between the voting behaviour of ethnic minorities and the electorate as a whole. The book pioneers innovative use of the British Election Study and features the results of the 1997 ethnic minority election study. It also contains an in-depth look at party strategy with regard to ethnic minorities, ethnic minority attitudes on key issues and policies, and the lessons to be learned from the performance of black and Asian parliamentary candidates. In particular, the analysis aims to uncover whether electoral abstention, orientation towards issues and party alignment are primarily circumstantial, as existing research suggests is the case among the white population. It is a major re-examination of the role of ethnicity in shaping political outlook and voting choice. The book will be essential reading for students, teachers and scholars interested in the involvement of Britain's ethnic minorities in the democratic process. It will also have extensive appeal among activists, policy-makers and opinion formers concerned with ethnic diversity, race relations and political inclusion.

Frederick Harris wades into a perennially contentious debate: the degree to which religious experience is central to African American political involvement and success. For the first time applying the new techniques of a cultural resource model to this question, Harris makes a strong case for the formative influence of religion, both as a source of strength and often determinative in practical political consequences. Harris's argument overturns a large body of quantitative research on political activity, principally in the Chicago religious community.

Chicana/o literature is justly acclaimed for the ways it voices opposition to the dominant Anglo culture, speaking for communities ignored by mainstream American media. Yet the world depicted in these texts is not solely inhabited by Anglos and Chicanos; as this groundbreaking new book shows, Asian characters are cast in peripheral but nonetheless pivotal roles. Southwest Asia investigates why key Chicana/o writers, including Americo Paredes, Rolando Hinojosa, Oscar Acosta, Miguel Mendez, and Virginia Grise, from the 1950s to the present day, have persistently referenced Asian people and places in the course of articulating their political ideas. Jayson Gonzales Sae-Saue takes our conception of Chicana/o literature as a transnational movement in a new direction, showing that it is not only interested in North-South migrations within the Americas, but is also deeply engaged with East-West interactions across the Pacific. He also raises serious concerns about how these texts invariably marginalize their Asian characters, suggesting that darker legacies of imperialism and exclusion might lurk beneath their utopian visions of a Chicana/o nation. Southwest Asia provides a fresh take on the Chicana/o literary canon, analyzing how these writers have depicted everything from interracial romances to the wars Americans fought in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. As it examines novels, plays, poems, and short stories, the book makes a compelling case that Chicana/o writers have long been at the forefront of theorizing U.S.-Asian relations.

An original work of fiction first published in 1893, this is one volume in a series of thirty, The Schomberg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers.

Victims of political persecution since 2000, Zimbabwe's whites have never overcome the problem of belonging. In North America and Australia, Europeans became the majority and "normal" partially through the genocide of native peoples. Settlers to Zimbabwe, however, only comprised a tiny minority. They monopolized the territory but struggled to assimilate culturally. Rather than integrating with African societies, many adopted a strategy of social escape. In this arresting and powerful study, David McDermott Hughes shows how they became emotionally and artistically invested in the non-human environment surrounding them. He traces how writers, artists, and farmers crafted a white identity focused on ecological conservation and how, emerging from state terror, some are now groping toward a whiteness of uncommon humanity and humility.