Summary
Contents
Subject index
Few recent sociology books have succeeded in capturing the imagination more than George RitzerÆ The McDonaldization of Society, which has become an international bestseller and has been translated into eleven languages. The book stimulated thought and discussion throughout the sociological community. In this sequel, Ritzer moves on by examining how the thesis of McDonaldization should be adapted and extended. WeberÆs ideas provided the theoretical foundation for the thesis, but the ideas of Kurt Mannheim on rationalization are also useful and lead to some new perspectives on the process. The degree to which sociology and sociological theory have been McDonaldized are also assessed. In Part II, Ritzer discusses the process of McDonaldization. Areas scrutinized include the labor process and the degree to which it has been McDonaldized, the relationship between McDonaldization and processes such as globalization and Americanization, and the credit card. Part III presents the new means of consumption. These include fast-food restaurants, credit cards, shopping malls, and cybermalls. Ritzer introduces us to “McDisneyization,” explaining the role of Disney in contemporary tourism. The modern universitythe McUniversityis also discussed as a new means of educational consumption. The book concludes with a reevaluation of the thesis and its future.
Dealing with the New Means of Consumption
Dealing with the New Means of Consumption
While I have paid a great deal of attention in this book to describing fast-food restaurants, credit cards, and other new means of consumption and tourism, one of my continuing concerns is the issue of how to respond to, or cope with, them. A chapter in The McDonaldization of Society is devoted to coping with McDonaldized systems, while a discussion of handling the various problems associated with credit cards is scattered throughout Expressing America. Those are very modern works, adopting modern grand narratives (McDonaldization, Americanization, and so on), and offering very modern solutions to what are perceived as modern problems. However, as this book has evolved, and the focus has shifted to ...
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