Documents of Life 2: An Invitation to A Critical Humanism

by Ken Plummer

Overview

Documents of Life was originally published in 1983 and became a classic text, providing both a persuasive argument for a particular approach and a manifesto for social research. As a critique of anti-humanist methodology in the social sciences, it championed the use of life stories and other personal documents in research which are now widely used today. This book is a substantially revised and expanded version which takes on recent developments.

Providing numerous illustrations from a range of life documents, the book traces the history of the method, examines ways of 'doing life story' research, and discusses the many political and ethical issues raised by such research. The whole book has been substantially re-written and

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780761961314
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	03/20/2001
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.75(d)

Table of Contents

Preface to the Fully Revised and Expanded Edition
For a Humanistic Way in Social Science
Sighting A Diversity of Life Stories
From Resource to Topic
Accessories to a Life Story
From Written Diaries to Video Diaries
The Auto/Biographical Society
‘Chicago' and the Making of a Sociological Method
Getting and Doing Life Stories
Thinking about Life History ‘Data'
Writing Life Stories
Life Stories and the Narrative Turn
The Moral and Human Face of Life Stories
Reflexivity, Power and Ethics
Truth, Value and Memory in Life Stories
Epilogue
Critical Humanism in a Postmodern World