Poverty and Power: The Problem of Structural Inequality, Second Edition - Softcover

Royce, .

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1442238089 ISBN 13: 9781442238084

Publisher: Rl, 2015

Synopsis

Poverty and Power: The Problem of Structural Inequality, Second Edition

About this title

About the Author:

Edward Royce is professor emeritus of sociology at Rollins College where he was a recipient of the Cornell Distinguished Faculty Award. He is the author of The Origins of Southern Sharecropping.

Review:

Edward Royce’s Poverty and Power provides a comprehensive look at the reasons why poverty persists in the United States and why it is so often taken for granted by many Americans. Royce's compelling argument identifies the cause of poverty as rooted in inequalities in power and politics and shows the inadequacies of individualistic, cultural, and human capital theories of poverty. (Ellen Reese, University of California, Riverside)

This updated edition of Poverty and Power remains the single most comprehensive exploration of structural inequality I have ever read. The book brilliantly excoriates our prevailing belief that poverty and inequality result from individuals’ poor decisions or bad personal attributes. In speaking with colleagues, Poverty and Power has become the ‘go to book’ for undergraduate and graduate classes that want to examine the economic, cultural, political, and social layers of systemic inequality. (Rick Eckstein, Villanova University)

Poverty and Power, second edition, is a tour de force treatment of competing perspectives on poverty in America and of the compelling case for understanding poverty as a structurally-generated social problem. This lively and current volume is essential reading for students and citizens interested in developing a more complete understanding of discussions and debates on the nature of poverty and on social policies designed to deal with poverty as a social problem. (Earl Wysong, Indiana University Kokomo)

Poverty and Power is a well-documented account of the political and economic roots of the exceptionally high rates of poverty in the United States and a systematic critique of explanations that blame the so-called deficiencies of the poor. Its clearly laid out argument and highly readable prose make it an excellent resource for classroom use and for all who are interested in understanding why economic hardship is so widespread in a country of such celebrated wealth. (Alice O'Connor, University of California Santa Barbara)

In the area of economic inequality, there is no book I would adopt before Poverty and Power. Royce analyzes and synthesizes an astonishing amount of material. I challenge anyone to find a scholar more steeped in the literature on poverty than this author. Poverty and Power will broaden and deepen the knowledge base of any professor (let alone student) but without excessive disciplinary jargon. The result of Royce’s painstakingly thorough research and elegant writing is a highly informative yet engaging and readable text. The first edition proved a hit with students in my senior seminar; we eagerly await this second edition! (Lisa M. Tillmann, Rollins College)

Poverty and Power persuasively demonstrates the force of social structures in generating and perpetuating poverty. Challenging conventional arguments about the poor being poor as a result of their own choices, Royce clearly details how the exercise of power by actors in structurally advantaged positions—such as corporate lobbyists, employers, and the media—necessitates the existence of poverty. This important work should be required reading for students, scholars, and policy makers.
(Monica McDermott, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign)

The United States has a serious poverty problem. As Edward Royce argues with admirable clarity, the causes lie deep in our social structure. Poverty and Power provides a lucid overview of contending theories and a wealth of empirical data. It is an essential antidote to the complacent, blame-the-poor rhetoric that has hamstrung progress toward the elimination of poverty in this country. (Matthew Nichter, Rollins College)

About this edition

• Publisher: Rl
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1442238089
• ISBN 13: 9781442238084
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 392