Research Catalog

Title

Savage pastimes : a cultural history of violent entertainment / Harold Schechter.

Author

Schechter, Harold.

Publication

New York : St. Martin's Press, 2005.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Holdings

Details

Description

192 pages : illustrations; 22 cm

Summary

"Does violent entertainment rot our children's brains and turn them into zombies - or worse, criminals? In this cogent, thoroughly researched book, American pop-culture expert Harold Schechter argues that exactly the opposite is true: a basic human need is given an outlet through violent images in popular media." "Moving from an exploration of early broadside engravings showing torture and the atrocities of war, to the depictions of crime in Victorian "penny dreadfuls," to scenes of violence in movies and video games, Schechter not only traces the history of disturbing images but analyzes the outrage they have inevitably provoked. By the twentieth century, the cultural watchdogs were out in full force, demonizing everything from movies to comic books and setting up a pattern of equating action-packed entertainment with aggression. According to Schechter, nothing could be further from the truth. He also blasts those who bemoan the alleged ultra-violence in media today and who conveniently scapegoat popular entertainment for a variety of cultural ills, including increased crime and real-life violence. Though American pop culture is far more technologically sophisticated today, Schechter shows that it is far less brutal than the entertainments of previous generations."--BOOK JACKET.

Subjects

• Mass media > United States > History
• Violence in mass media > History

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 175-180) and index.

ISBN

0312282761

LCCN

2004051244

OCLC

• ocm56191842
• SCSB-5162140

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries