Los Angeles Times Book Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 6 (1985) Winner
Ann Swidler
アン・スウィドらー
An Suwidorā
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1944-12-11 （Knoxville, Tennessee, United States）
- Nationality
- United States
- Languages
- English
- Religion
- Judaism
- Residence History
- Knoxville, Tennessee (raised) → Berkeley, California (graduate study and academic career)
Career
- Occupations
- Sociologist, Professor
- Active Years
- 1975-2025
- Affiliations
- Department of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley
- Memberships
- American Sociological Association, American Academy of Arts and Sciences (Fellow)
- Influenced By
- Arlie Hochschild, Robert N. Bellah, Reinhard Bendix, Neil Smelser
- Influenced
- Mounira M. Charrad, John Levi Martin, Wendy Griswold, Lynette Spillman, Philip Gorski
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radcliffe College (Harvard University) | — | — | Bachelor of Arts | 1962–1966 | United States |
| University of California, Berkeley | — | Sociology | Ph.D. | 1969–1975 | United States |
| University of California, Berkeley | — | Sociology | Master of Arts | 1969–1971 | United States |
Radcliffe College (Harvard University)
Degree:
Bachelor of Arts
Period:
1962–1966
Year of Graduation:
1966
Country:
United States
Attended Radcliffe College (the women's coordinate college of Harvard at the time)
University of California, Berkeley
Sociology
Degree:
Ph.D.
Period:
1969–1975
Year of Graduation:
1975
Country:
United States
Dissertation titled 'Organization Without Authority' (1975)
University of California, Berkeley
Sociology
Degree:
Master of Arts
Period:
1969–1971
Year of Graduation:
1971
Country:
United States
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship | — | — | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation | 受賞 |
| 1985 | Los Angeles Times Book Award (Education) | Habits of the Heart | 書籍 | Los Angeles Times | 受賞 |
| 1986 | Pulitzer Prize (finalist) | Habits of the Heart | 一般ノンフィクション | Columbia University (Pulitzer Prizes) | ファイナリスト |
| 2013 | Elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences | — | — | American Academy of Arts and Sciences | 選出 |
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship
1982
Organization:
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result:
受賞
Los Angeles Times Book Award (Education)
1985
Work:
Habits of the Heart
Category:
書籍
Organization:
Los Angeles Times
Result:
受賞
Pulitzer Prize (finalist)
1986
Work:
Habits of the Heart
Category:
一般ノンフィクション
Organization:
Columbia University (Pulitzer Prizes)
Result:
ファイナリスト
Elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
2013
Organization:
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Result:
選出
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Habits of the Heart
1985 Sociology / Cultural studiesAn analysis of American individualism and commitment. Co-authored work examining tensions between societal norms and individual values.
IndividualismCommunity and valuesCultural beliefs
Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies
1986 Scholarly article (Sociology)Argues that culture functions as a 'tool-kit' people draw on to accomplish actions, rather than merely internalized norms—an influential article in cultural sociology.
Culture and actionSymbolsStrategies of action
Inequality by Design: Cracking the Bell Curve Myth
1996 Sociology / Political sociologyA rebuttal to 'The Bell Curve', arguing that social inequalities arise from cultural and institutional design rather than purely innate differences.
InequalityPolicy critiqueDebates on intelligence
Talk of Love: How Culture Matters
2001 Sociology / Cultural studiesDiscusses the discrepancy between cultural 'talk of love' and lived relationships, reconceptualizing how culture organizes social action regarding love.
Love and cultureIdeal vs. lived experienceSocial action
Bibliography
- Organization Without Authority: Dilemmas of Social Control in Free Schools (1979)
- Habits of the Heart (co-authored, 1985)
- Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies (article, 1986)
- Inequality by Design (co-authored, 1996)
- Talk of Love: How Culture Matters (2001)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Analytical and theoretical proseStyle that reconceptualizes culture theoretically
- Recurring Motifs
- The 'tool-kit' metaphor for cultureRelation between social action and symbolsTension between institutions and everyday practices
Legacy
A scholar who has had significant impact on cultural sociology. 'Culture in Action' popularized viewing culture as a toolkit for action; her books have influenced both academic and public debates.
Academic Societies
- American Sociological Association
- American Academy of Arts and Sciences (Fellow)
Archives
- University of California, Berkeley archives (possible repository of related materials)
Quotes
-
Culture is not simply internalized norms controlling behavior but a 'tool-kit' people draw on to accomplish particular strategies of action.
Source: "Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies", American Sociological Review (1986) (1986)
Trivia
- Born December 11, 1944 (raised in Knoxville, Tennessee).
- Her family is Jewish and experienced anti-Semitism in Tennessee.
- Received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1982 and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2013.