Talking at Trena's: Everyday Conversations at an African American Tavern

"An intimate look at racial identity and racial conflict." —Mitchell Duneier, Los Angeles Times Book Prize–winning author Talking at Trena's is an ethnography conducted in a bar in an African American, middle-class neighborhood on Chicago's southside. Sociology professor Reuben A. BufordMay's work focuses on how the mostly black, working- and middle-class patrons of Trena's talk about race, work, class, women, relationships, the media, and life in general. May recognizes tavern talk as a form of social play and symbolic performance within the tavern, as well as an indication of the social problems African Americans confront on a daily basis. Following a long tradition of research on informal gathering places, May's work reveals, though close description and analysis of ethnographic data, how African Americans come to understand the racial dynamics of American society which impact their jobs, entertainment—particularly television programs—and their social interactions with peers, employers, and others. Talking at Trena's provides a window into the laughs, complaints, experiences, and strategies which Trena's regulars share for managing daily life outside the safety and comfort of the tavern. "A tour de force. . . . May captures the subtle aspects of race in the everyday life of African Americans with original insights into informal social interactions in a segregated setting, and the implications of affirming racial identity in a multiracial society." —National Medal of Science-winning author William Julius Wilson

© 2001 NYU Press (E-bog): 9780814761274

Udgivelsesdato

E-bog: 1. august 2001