| The Power of the Zoot: Youth Culture and Resistance During World War II Volume 24 Contributor(s): Alvarez, Luis (Author) |
|
 |
ISBN: 0520261542 ISBN-13: 9780520261549 Publisher: University of California Press OUR PRICE: $29.65 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: September 2009 Annotation: Flamboyant zoot suit culture, with its ties to fashion, jazz and swing music, jitterbug and Lindy Hop dancing, unique patterns of speech, and even risque experimentation with gender and sexuality, captivated the country's youth in the 1940s. "The Power of the Zoot "is the first book to give national consideration to this famous phenomenon. Providing a new history of youth culture based on rare, in-depth interviews with former zoot-suiters, Luis Alvarez explores race, region, and the politics of culture in urban America during World War II. He argues that Mexican American and African American youths, along with many nisei and white youths, used popular culture to oppose accepted modes of youthful behavior, the dominance of white middle-class norms, and expectations from within their own communities. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | United States - 20th Century - Social Science | Popular Culture - Design | Fashion & Accessories |
| Dewey: 306.097 |
| LCCN: 2007033316 |
| Series: American Crossroads |
| Physical Information: 1" H x 5.9" W x 8.9" (1.00 lbs) 336 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 1940's - Ethnic Orientation - African American - Ethnic Orientation - Chicano - Demographic Orientation - Urban - Chronological Period - 20th Century |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Flamboyant zoot suit culture, with its ties to fashion, jazz and swing music, jitterbug and Lindy Hop dancing, unique patterns of speech, and even risqu experimentation with gender and sexuality, captivated the country's youth in the 1940s. The Power of the Zoot is the first book to give national consideration to this famous phenomenon. Providing a new history of youth culture based on rare, in-depth interviews with former zoot-suiters, Luis Alvarez explores race, region, and the politics of culture in urban America during World War II. He argues that Mexican American and African American youths, along with many nisei and white youths, used popular culture to oppose accepted modes of youthful behavior, the dominance of white middle-class norms, and expectations from within their own communities. |