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Adolescent Storm and Stress - An Evaluation of the Mead-freeman Controversy (Paperback)
Loot Price: R1,592
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Adolescent Storm and Stress - An Evaluation of the Mead-freeman Controversy (Paperback)
Series: Research Monographs in Adolescence Series
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
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In 1928, Margaret Mead published her first book, entitled Coming of
Age in Samoa, in which she described to the Western world an exotic
culture where people "came of age" with a minimum of "storm and
stress." In 1983, Derek Freeman, an Australian anthropologist,
published a book in which he systematically attacked Mead's
conclusions about that culture and the way people came of age.
Since then, a great deal of attention has been directed toward the
Mead-Freeman controversy. This book contributes to that controversy
and to the general understanding of adolescent storm and stress by
undertaking an interdisciplinary analysis of Freeman's criticisms
and an assessment of the plausibility of Mead's work. Addressing
the issue of what has become of Mead's Samoa of the 1920s, this
book historically tracks the nature of the "coming of age in Samoa"
to the present, in order to give the reader an understanding of the
circumstances confronting young people in contemporary Samoa. It
shows that Mead's Samoa has been lost; what was once a place in
which most young people came of age with relative ease has become a
place where young people experience great difficulty in terms of
finding a place in their society, to the point where they currently
have one of the highest suicide rates in the world. While much has
been written about this controversy during the past decade, a gap
exists in the sense that most of the publicity about Mead's work
has missed her main focus concerning the processes governing the
"coming of age" of her informants. A valuable historical document
and a pioneering study, Mead's book anticipated changes that are
still unfolding today in the field of human development. The
preoccupation with issues tangential to her main focus--issues
involving the Samoan ethos and character--have not only diverted a
clear analysis of Mead's work, they have also led to the creation
of a number of myths and misconceptions about Mead and her book.
The author also has an interest in Mead's original focus on the
relative impact of biological and cultural influences in shaping
the behavior of those coming of age--in all societies. Despite what
has been said by her critics, not only was this a crucial issue
during the time of her study, but it is also an issue that is now
just beginning to be understood some 60 years later. In addition,
the issue of biology versus culture--the so-called nature-nurture
debate--carries with it many political implications. In the case of
the Mead-Freeman controversy, this political agenda looms large--an
agenda which is clearly spelled out in this book.
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