Doing Cultural Geography

Doing Cultural Geography is an introduction to cultural geography that integrates theoretical discussion with applied examples. The emphasis throughout is on doing. Recognising that many undergraduates have difficulty with both theory and methods courses, the text demystifies the 'theory' informing cultural geography and encourages students to engage directly with theory in practice. It emphasises what can be done with humanist, Marxist, post-structuralist, feminist, and post-colonial theory, demonstrating that this is the best way to prompt students to engage with the otherwise daunting theoretical literature. Twenty short chapters are grouped into five sections on Theory, Topic Selection, Methodology, Interpretation and Presentation. The main text is intercut with questions, suggestions for activities and short sample extracts from scholarly texts, chosen to exemplify the subject of the chapter and to stimulate further reading. Chapters conclude with glossaries and suggestions for further reading. Doing Cultural Geography will facilitate project work from small, classroom-based activities to the planning stages of undergraduate research projects. It will be essential reading for students in modules in cultural geography and foundation courses in human geography and theory and methods.

Table of Contents:
Introduction - Pamela Shurmer-Smith PART ONE: THEORY INTO PRACTICE The Trouble with Theory - Pamela Shurmer-Smith Humanistic and Behaviouralist Geography - Carol Ekinsmyth and Pamela Shurmer-Smith Marx and After - Pamela Shurmer-Smith Poststructuralist Cultural Geography - Pamela Shurmer-Smith Feminist Cultural Geography - Carol Ekinsmyth Postcolonial Geographies - Pamela Shurmer-Smith PART TWO: DOING IT Selecting Topics for Study - Katy Bennett, Carol Ekinsmyth and Pamela Shurmer-Smith Methods and Methodology - Pamela Shurmer-Smith Extensive Methods - Tim Brown Using Secondary Data Using Archives - Kevin Hannam Reading Texts - Pamela Shurmer-Smith Participant Observation - Katy Bennett Interviews and Focus Groups - Katy Bennett Field Observation - Louis Shurmer-Smith and Pamela Shurmer-Smith Looking at Paris Feminist Methodology - Carol Ekinsmyth PART THREE: MAKING SENSE Coping with Archival and Textual Data - Kevin Hannam Handling Case Studies - Katy Bennett and Pamela Shurmer-Smith Representation of Research - Katy Bennett and Pamela Shurmer-Smith Creating a Text Concluding Thoughts - Pamela Shurmer-Smith