Religion and popular culture is a fast-growing field that spans a variety of disciplines. This volume offers the first real survey of the field to date and provides a guide for the work of future scholars. It explores: key issues of definition and of methodology religious encounters with popular culture across media, material culture and space, ranging from videogames and social networks to cooking and kitsch, architecture and national monuments representations of religious traditions in the media and popular culture, including important non-Western spheres such as Bollywood This Companion will serve as an enjoyable and informative resource for students and a stimulus to future scholarly work.

Religion and popular culture is a fast-growing field that spans a variety of disciplines. This volume offers the first real survey of the field to date and provides a guide for the work of future scholars. It expores:

• key issues of definition and of methodology
• religious encounters with popular culture across media, material culture and space, ranging from videogames and social networks to cooking and kitsch, architecture and national monuments
• the representation of different religious traditions within the media and popular culture, mainly in the West but also including important non-western spheres such as Bollywood.

Students will find the Companion an enjoyable and informative resource, whilst scholars will find it a stimulus to future work in the field.

"Reader in Religion and Popular Culture" is the classroom resource the field has been waiting for. It provides key readings as well as new approaches and cutting-edge work, encouraging a broader methodological and historical understanding. It is the first anthology to a trace broader themes of religion and popular culture across time and across very different types of media. With a combined teaching experience of over 30 years dedicated to teaching undergraduates, Lisle Dalton and Eric Mazur have ensured that the pedagogical features and structure of the volume are valuable to both students and their professors: - Divided into a number of units based on common semester syllabi- Provides a blend of materials focussed on method with materials focussed on subject- Each unit contains an introduction to the texts - Each unit is followed by questions designed to encourage or enhance post-reading reflection and classroom discussion- A glossary of terms from the unit's readings is provided, as well as suggestions for further reading and investigation- Online resource provides guidance on accessing some of the most useful interesting resources available onlineThe Reader is suitable as the foundational textbook for any undergraduate course on religion and popular culture.

This widely praised version of Dante's masterpiece, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the Harold Morton Landon Translation Award of the Academy of American Poets, is more idiomatic and approachable than its many predecessors. Former U.S. Poet Laureate Pinsky employs slant rhyme and near rhyme to preserve Dante's terza rima form without distorting the flow of English idiom. The result is a clear and vigorous translation that is also unique, student-friendly, and faithful to the original: "A brilliant success," as Bernard Knox wrote in The New York Review of Books.

Bing Crosby's innovations as recording artist, actor, businessman, and radio and television performer. A multidisciplinary exploration, plus personal testimony from family members and colleagues. Going My Way: Bing Crosby and American Culture is the first serious study of the singer/actor's art and of his centrality to the history of twentieth-century popular music, film, and the entertainment industry. The volume uses a wide range of scholarly and cultural perspectives to explore Crosby's unique and lasting achievements. It also includes tributes and reminiscences from Bing's widow Kathryn, his grandson Steve, his record producer Ken Barnes, and one of his most popular successors, Michael Feinstein. Other contributors include Gary Giddins, the author of a widely acclaimed recent biography of the singer, and Will Friedwald, the acknowledged expert on the developmentof the "great American songbook." In addition to studying Bing Crosby's innovations and remarkable achievements as a recording artist, Going My Way explores his accomplishments as an actor, businessman, and radio and television performer. Going My Way makes an impressive case not only for Crosby's considerable talent and inimitable style, but also for his raising the quality of popular singing to the level of art. Contributors: Ken Barnes, Samuel L. Chell, Kathryn Crosby, Steven C. Crosby, John Mark Dempsey, Bernard F. Dick, Deborah Dolan, Michael Feinstein, Will Friedwald, Jeanne Fuchs, Gary Giddins, Peter Hammar, M. Thomas Inge, Malcolm MacFarlane, Eric Michael Mazur, Martin McQuade, Elaine Anderson Phillips, Ruth Prigozy, Walter Raubicheck, Linda A. Robinson, Stephen C. Shafer, David White, F.W. Wiggins Ruth Prigozy is Professor of English at Hofstra University. Walter Raubicheck is Professor of English and Chair of the English Department at Pace University.

The bilingual, illustrated, and National Book Award-winning edition of Charles Baudelaire’s masterpiece. The complete French text is accompanied with an English translation by Richard Howard. Charles Baudelaire’s 1857 masterwork was scandalous in its day for its portrayals of sex, same-sex love, death, the corrupting and oppressive power of the modern city and lost innocence, Les Fleurs Du Mal (The Flowers of Evil) remains powerful and relevant for our time. In “Spleen et idéal,” Baudelaire dramatizes the erotic cycle of ecstacy and anguish—of sexual and romantic love. “Tableaux Parisiens” condemns the crushing effects of urban planning on a city’s soul and praises the city’s anti-heroes including the deranged and derelict. “Le Vin” centers on the search for oblivion in drink and drugs. The many kinds of love that lie outside traditional morality is the focus of “Fleurs du Mal” while rebellion is at the heart of “Révolte.” The voice of Baudelaire lives in this award-winning edition that includes monotypes by artist, Michael Mazur. “Howard’s achievement is such that we can be confident that this Fleurs du Mal will long stand as definitive, a superb guide to France’s greatest poet.”—The Nation

"Reader in Religion and Popular Culture" is the classroom resource the field has been waiting for. It provides key readings as well as new approaches and cutting-edge work, encouraging a broader methodological and historical understanding. It is the first anthology to a trace broader themes of religion and popular culture across time and across very different types of media. With a combined teaching experience of over 30 years dedicated to teaching undergraduates, Lisle Dalton and Eric Mazur have ensured that the pedagogical features and structure of the volume are valuable to both students and their professors: - Divided into a number of units based on common semester syllabi- Provides a blend of materials focussed on method with materials focussed on subject- Each unit contains an introduction to the texts - Each unit is followed by questions designed to encourage or enhance post-reading reflection and classroom discussion- A glossary of terms from the unit's readings is provided, as well as suggestions for further reading and investigation- Online resource provides guidance on accessing some of the most useful interesting resources available onlineThe Reader is suitable as the foundational textbook for any undergraduate course on religion and popular culture.

Do you love your business but don't know how to talk about it with others? Is the fear of public speaking keeping you from taking your business to the next level? You know public speaking is a great way to establish your credibility, create buzz about your business, and attract your perfect client, but you have no idea what to talk about or why anyone should listen to you. Or are there a million ideas swirling in your head but you don't know the presentation secrets of crafting a message that resonates? Do you fear that people won't like you or want to do business with you because of something you said-or didn't say? Fear public speaking no more. Professional public speaking expert Michelle Mazur is here to help. With a Ph.D. in Communication and hundreds of speeches under her belt, Michelle knows exactly the presentations skills you need to engage your audience, persuade people to believe in your message, and ultimately, get the sale or business relationship you desire. In Speak Up for Your Business, Michelle reveals how you can: Develop your presentation skills so that you persuade and motivate your audience Stop feeling sleazy about selling with this one presentation secret Create a strategy to cope with your fear of public speaking Embrace your Inner F-Bomb (it's not what you think) Organize your presentation in a sexy way Give your audience real value Create an experience through story with four essential ingredients Begin your presentation with a win & close with a bang Adapt your presentation on the fly Handle those wing-nut questions that threaten to derail your speech Land more speaking gigs"

This widely praised version of Dante's masterpiece, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the Harold Morton Landon Translation Award of the Academy of American Poets, is more idiomatic and approachable than its many predecessors. Former U.S. Poet Laureate Pinsky employs slant rhyme and near rhyme to preserve Dante's "terza rima" form without distorting the flow of English idiom. The result is a clear and vigorous translation that is also unique, student-friendly, and faithful to the original: "A brilliant success," as Bernard Knox wrote in "The New York Review of Books."

Comprising 91 A-Z entries, this encyclopedia provides a broad and comprehensive introduction to the topic of religion within film. Technology has enabled films to reach much wider audiences, enabling today's viewers to access a dizzying number of films that employ diverse symbolism and communicate a vast array of viewpoints. Encyclopedia of Religion and Film will provide such an audience with the tools to begin their own exploration of the deeper meanings of these films and grasp the religious significance within. Organized alphabetically, this encyclopedia provides more than 90 entries on the larger religious traditions, the major film-producing regions of the globe, the films that have stirred controversy, the most significant religious symbols, and the more important filmmakers. The included topics provide substantially more information on the intersection of religion and film than any of the similar volumes currently available. While the emphasis is on the English-speaking world and the films produced therein, there is also substantial representation of non-English, non-Western film and filmmakers, providing significant intercultural coverage to the topic. Presents 91 A-Z entries that illuminate topics of geographic and regional interest, biographic data, categories common in the study of religion, and examinations of specific films or film-related events Contains contributions from a remarkable group of distinguished, well-published authorities and younger scholars, all with relevant backgrounds in religion, film, culture, or multiple areas of expertise Includes images of important film directors as well as film stills Provides selected bibliographic information regarding the intersection of religion and film that supplements the "for further reading" section of each entry Offers an indexed filmography of works noted throughout the encyclopedia, providing significant information about each film, such as year released, director, and major actors

What happens when a minority religious group's beliefs run counter to the laws and principles of the American constitution? How do Americans reconcile the conflicting demands of church and state? In The Americanization of Religious Minorities, Eric Michael Mazur recounts the experiences of Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and Native Americans as cases in which minority religious groups seek to practice their faith in a constitutional order that recognizes a higher authority different from, and sometimes incompatible with, their own.

Mazur identifies three basic strategies these minority religious groups can follow: establishing a separate peace; accommodating their theology to political realities; and engaging in sustained conflict. He shows that, in order to practice its faith without hindrance from the law, a member of a religious minority must somehow buy into the principles and values of America's constitutional government. He also concludes that the closer a minority's beliefs are to Protestant Christianity, the easier the accommodation. Throughout, Mazur emphasizes the experience of religious minorities in dealing with this problem.

A fascinating investigation of religious groups' right to practice their faith, The Americanization of Religious Minorities will be of interest to students and scholars of American religion, American politics, and sociology.

"[I believe] the First Amendment represents the gift with the greatest potential to be given by this country to the world. But I also believe it is a promise that, like the messiah, is always coming but never here. We must understand what we have done to others who have faced the dilemma of being religious minorities in thisculture so that we can better understand the limits, and the potential, of our hopes for greater religious freedom." -- from the Preface

"It has long been accepted that no freedom is absolute, but we do not often examine the implicit boundaries set on religious freedom or think about the ramifications for religious communities that -- for any number of reasons -- do not consider themselves, or are not considered by others, part of the mainstream. Part of the value of this analysis rests in its exploration of how minority religious communities balance the desire to join the dominant culture, on the one hand, with the sometimes conflicting desire to maintain a particularistic community identity, on the other." -- from the Introduction

DIAGNOSIS OF ENDOMETRIAL BIOPSIES, 2/e, revised and now with color illustrations, continues the tradition of its predecessor as being the concise and complete diagnostic guide to the endometrial biopsy. A review from MODERN PATHOLOGY touts it as being extremely useful for the practicing pathologist because it outlines criteria for diagnosis, helps in solving diagnostic diagnostic dilemmas, and clarifies controversial issues. The text is structured to present a logical approach to formulating a pathologic diagnosis from the diverse array of tissue received in the surgical pathology laboratory with an emphasis on differential diagnosis. More than 220 illustrations complement the text, with 70 of them in full color throughout. Each chapter includes a section on Clinical Queries and Reporting that summarizes the features that must be discussed in the final pathology report. The authors are two prominent gynecologic pathologists, and this book is derived from their long-running Short Course presented at the International Academy of Pathology.From rave reviews of the first edition: This delightsful and well written monograph stresses the practical aspects and common problems in endo