The City on Screen: Modern Strangers of Cinematic Istanbul

Sertaç Timur Demir, Gümüşhane Üniversitesi, Turkey

ISBN: 978-1-64889-787-0
Availability: Available 4 weeks
214pp. ¦ $64 £51 €60

‘The City on Screen: Modern Strangers of Cinematic Istanbul’ attempts to analyze how Istanbul is captured through the projector; in other words, the ontological relationship between city and film and how it is elaborated within the context of Istanbul and the sense of strangerhood. This book shifts the axis of Istanbul, typically known as a touristic city, to its underlying details through the strangers in the modern city. Five different films set in this region are analyzed in the text that help to reveal and clarify the socio-urban life of modern Istanbul. The characters and stories in these films tell how Istanbul has socially and architecturally become a city of strangers. The films analyzed include ‘A Touch of Spice’ (2004), ‘Men on the Bridge’ (2009), ‘A Run for Money’ (1999), ‘Distant’ (2002), and ‘10 to 11’ (2009). The theoretical framework of this book is based on the works of Georg Simmel, Zygmunt Bauman and Richard Sennett. These three thinkers have all attempted to look for answers to the sociological question of strangerhood in urban living. This book accomplishes this connection by discussing the similarities and differences between each of their theories regarding the city, cinema and strangerhood.

Many Rivers to Cross: Black Migrations in Brazil and the Caribbean

Edited by Elaine P. Rocha, The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados

ISBN: 978-1-64889-767-2
Availability: Pre-order
$90 £72 €84

Since the first contact with Europeans, the Americas have been a continent of immigrants as much as a continent of continuous migrations. Black migrations represent more than the transit of people between countries and regions and from rural areas to urban centers. It contributed to constructing networks that made survival possible, creating neighborhoods and cultural expression, impacting dietary habits, exchanging crops and agricultural techniques, and uplifting families from slavery and misery to ownership, education, and political representation. The most dangerous elements that moved from place to place with blacks were the ideas of freedom and citizenship. This book brings together articles from authors dedicated to the study of black migrations in diverse countries as well as in diverse historical periods to highlight that the movement of black people has been continuous over the centuries. Sometimes voluntarily, others coerced, people have moved from one place to another, carrying with them history and important cultural traditions such as language, music, and religion. Moreover, dangerous ideas of liberty and equality would spread through the African Diaspora. Ten authors from renowned universities contributed with their works on black migrations from a transnational perspective, exploring how people have transited between regions, countries, and continents, carrying their ideas, costumes, beliefs, and strategies for survival. In their trajectories, migrants built communities, created religions, musical traditions, languages, and much more. They influenced politics, contributed to revolutions and wars, to the economy, and shaped societies. For centuries, Latin America's official history has pushed black immigrants' histories to the margins, keeping them in the shadows and denying their importance in the construction of the modern world. The works brought together in this book aim to contribute to breaking this pattern, bringing the experiences of black migrants from the margins to the center.

The theory of the kingdom: A unified model of human agency

Andrew Root

ISBN: 978-1-64889-757-3
Availability: Pre-order
$79 £63 €74

This original monograph presents a comprehensive theory regarding the economy of the kingdom of God. The theory and associated model will help individuals make better choices. The research integrates fundamentals of the temporal real economy, and the permanent economy of the kingdom of God, to present a unified model of human agency. According to the model, effective agents are salt and light in the real economy, arresting corruption and revealing the truth. The effective agency produces life, peace, and growth. Individual and organizational practices that arrest corruption and reveal truth can resolve longstanding economic grievances. The list of spiritual credence goods is extensive and includes commonly known virtues such as humility, patience, and hope. Spiritual goods are allocated based on the owner-agent relationship. The quantity of goods the owner supplies is in proportion to an individual’s sacrificial offering of time and money. Spiritual goods are stored as heart capital. In a process analogous to the real economy, heart labor applied to heart capital produces desirable outputs. The owner relates to his agents through a heart-inscribed behavioral contract. The owner generally intervenes in the real economy by communicating with agents rather than by restricting choice. Prior studies across economics, finance, and sociology prove the efficiency of behavioral contracts and communication over restricted choice. Herein researchers will find new testable propositions, and practitioners will find new ideas and practices to live better, more consequential lives. Examples of practical applications include methods of resolving group-level bias and understanding the purpose of life’s difficulties.

Transformational Analysis in Practice: Music-analytical studies on composers and musicians from around the world

Edited by Bozhidar Chapkanov

ISBN: 978-1-64889-754-2
Availability: Pre-order
$108 £86 €101

'Transformational Analysis in Practice' is a Must-Have for everyone working in the field or aspiring to develop their music-analytical and theoretical skills in Transformational Theory. This co-authored book puts together a plethora of analytical studies, diverse both in the repertoires covered and the methodologies employed. It is a much-needed anthology in this sub-field of music analysis, which has been developing and growing in recent years, reaching ever wider outlets in English-speaking countries and beyond, from dedicated conference panels to YouTube videos. The book is divided into four parts based on the repertoires under discussion. Part I encompasses four analytical studies on familiar composers from the European Romanticism of the nineteenth century. Part II analyzes the music of less familiar composers from Brazil and Turkey. Part III offers four contrasting ways to adapt the analytical capabilities of Neo-Riemannian Theory to the post-tonal music of the twentieth century. Catering to the interests of jazz performers and researchers, as well as those into popular music production, Part IV offers transformational analytical approaches to both notated and improvised jazz, emphasizing John Coltrane’s performance. Providing an invaluable synthesis of a wide range of analytical studies, this book will be an essential companion for many musicology students, as well as for performers and composers.

Lessons from Regional Responses to Security, Health and Environmental Challenges in Latin America

Edited by Ivo Ganchev, Founder of the Centre for Regional Integration, UK

ISBN: 978-1-64889-773-3
Availability: Pre-order
$95 £80 €88

In our increasingly interconnected world, various governance challenges quickly spill over across borders. The COVID-19 pandemic affected Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) more than any other developing region, drawing attention to the necessity to examine joint responses to collective challenges in the region. Most studies on LAC integration explore economic engagement, analyse particular regional organisations and events, or discuss the process of regionalism at large. However, the reality of politics is shaped by the need to address concrete problems, which are not always economic. In recent years, LAC states have faced numerous challenges in the fields of security, health and environmental protection, prompting three research questions. What is the role of Latin American organisations in maintaining regional security and how are relevant challenges addressed in Central America and the Andes? What was the impact of COVID-19 on Latin American states and how do regional actors respond to public health emergencies? And in what way is environmental policy formulated in different parts of Latin America and what lessons can be drawn for other developing regions? This edited volume addresses these questions through methodologically diverse perspectives, presented in eleven chapters which are authored by 16 authoritative academics. The contributions are thematically organised in three parts and present pragmatic considerations in mind, discussing existing and potential real solutions to pressing issues. Each chapter provides insights which would be of interest to scholars and students of regional governance or politics in Latin America or the Global South at large, as well as to policy advisors and decision-makers who seek to understand the reasons behind the successes and failures of Latin American regional responses to collective challenges as well as their limitations and potential for future improvement.