Iconic Power

A collection of original articles that explore social aspects of the phenomenon of icon. Having experienced the benefits and realized the limitations of so called 'linguistic turn', sociology has recently acknowledged a need to further expand its horizons.

'Iconic Power is the strongest theoretical statement to yet come out of the 'Strong Program' in Cultural Sociology. Arguably, more than any other trope, including those of ritual and performance, the concept of 'iconicity' promises to break free of the economistic, linguistic and other kinds of reductionisms that plague the cultural sciences. This fine volume contains both theoretical expositions on how pictorial icons do their cultural work, as well as applied analyses of phenomena such as 9/11, images of famines, Woodstock and Bayreuth as 'iconic' events, expensive Australian red wines and the political iconography of Post-Communist Eastern Europe. If cultural sociology is to have a vibrant future and not repeat the mistakes of the past then in Iconic Power: Materiality and Meaning in Social Life practitioners have a handbook on how to approach the distinctive character of the visual and other non-discursive symbols.' - Eduardo de la Fuente, Sociology, Flinders University; author of Twentieth Century Music and the Question of Modernity 'Ranging in its coverage from the events of 9/11 to images of HIV, and from the revolutions of 1989 to cult wines, this book systematically unpacks the tremendous importance of icons in social life. Both a striking contribution to visual sociology, and a powerful manifesto for new directions in cultural sociology, Iconic Power is fascinating reading for everyone interested in the seductive potency of iconography.' - David Inglis, Head of Department, Department of Sociology, University of Aberdeen

Jeffrey C. Alexander, Yale University, USADominik Bartma?ski, Yale University, USAGottfried Boehm, Basel University, SwitzerlandHans Belting, Northwestern University, USAFuyuki Kurasawa, York University, CanadaWendy Bowler, LaTrobe University, AustraliaWerner Binder, Masaryk University, Czech RepublicPhilip Smith, Yale University, USAIan Woodward, Griffith University, AustraliaDavid Ellison, Griffith University, AustraliaDaniel uber, University of Lucerne, SwitzerlandSlobodan Karamani?, Ljubljana Graduate School of the Humanities, SloveniaValentin Rauer, Goethe University Frankfurt Main, GermanyBernhard Giesen, Universität Konstanz, Germany Julia Sonnevend, Columbia University, USAPiotr Sztompka, Jagiellonian University, Poland