Hirsch's Book Research Articles

A courtship after marriage: Sexuality and love in Mexican transnational families

A Courtship After Marriage: Sexuality and Love in Mexican Transnational Families. Jennifer S. Hirsch. Los Angeles: University of California Press. 2003. 376 pp. ISBN: 0-52022871-5. $24.95 (paper). Changing Men and Masculinities in Latin America. Matthew C. Gutmann (Ed.). Durham, NC: Duke University Press. 2003. 418 pp. ISBN 0-8223-3022-9. $24.95 (paper). Though recent demographics show that the Latino population is the largest and fastest growing minority group in the United States, research focused specifically on these families has remained very limited. Two recent publications look at Latin Americans and their families, both within the United States and in various locations in Latin America. As the title implies, Jennifer Hirsch's book, A Courtship After Marriage: Sexuality and Love in Mexican Transnational Families, creates a vivid illustration of the impact of immigration on Latino men and women's marriages and intimate relationships. Hirsch conducted extensive life histories with Mexican immigrants in Atlanta, Georgia, and their relatives who live in Jalisco, Mexico (26 adult daughters, 8 of their husbands, and 9 of their mothers). Coming from a tradition of women's studies, Hirsch uses detailed ethnographic portrayals to show how these individuals have replaced traditionally prescribed notions of marriage with contemporary ideas of companionatc relationships. In Chapters 1 and 2, she provides a nuanced accounting of her participants' lives and the methods she used to enter into the confidences of the individuals in these transnational communities. Hirsch uses Chapter 3 to demonstrate how the idea of courtship (noviazgo) has changed from a focus on devotion and respect to a newfound importance placed on having fun and winning the confidence of one's future companion. Intimacy and trust (confianza) have begun to take the place of both the notion of honor (respeto) and the concept that one must prepare for a respectable marriage to a respectable partner. Hirsch goes on to illustrate the global rise in companionate relationships and marriages, supported by the research of scholars from every continent. In Chapters 4 and 5, Hirsch demonstrates the shifts in the gendered ideologies and practices of men and women in her sample of Mexican nationals. She affirms the work of Gutmann's The Meanings of Macho (1996), demonstrating that in many instances, men have turned from a traditional ideology of machismo to a more egalitarian identity, including involvement in housework, child care, and faithfulness to one's spouse. Hirsch also notes that this transformation is occurring for many women as well: allowing women to be more social (i.e., to go out drinking), to work full time, to visit their friends and relatives, and have greater decisionmaking power in their relationships and families. She shows that many couples have even changed their way of talking to each other. Citing studies and examples from her own interviews, Hirsch reveals that in contrast with earlier generations, these couples are more likely to openly talk their minds, speak more civilly, and express consideration for one another's free will and rights within their marriage. Compared with previous studies of Mexican immigrant women, Chapter 6 creates a more complex understanding of these women's resources and bargaining power. Hirsch depicts immigrant women's resident status, English proficiency, employment, and social networks as interwoven resources that give certain women in the United States new freedoms and constraints within their relationships. She also demonstrates that although the saying En el Norte la mujer manda (in the [United States] the woman gives the orders) may fit for some women, this saying does not hold up in all marriages. Chapters 7 and 8 draw this book to a close with an extraordinary glimpse into the meaning and emotions behind women's sexuality and their choices about fertility. She shows how both sexuality and fertility have been socially constructed and continue to change for both Mexican immigrants and Mexican nationals. …

Pronouncing & persevering: gender and the discourses of disputing in an African Islamic court

The title of this study reflects the image of gender relations most commonly associated with Islamic law - this being a study of disputes involving Swahili Muslims in coastal Kenya. Men need only pronounce divorce to resolve marital conflicts, while embattled wives must persevere by enduring marital hardships. Susan Hirsch's observations of Islamic courts uncover how Muslim women actively use legal processes to transform their domestic lives, achieving victories on some fronts, but reinforcing their image as subordinate to men through the speech they produce in court. The focus of this text is the language used in disputes, particularly how men and women narrate their claims, and how their speech shapes and is shaped by gender hierarchy in postcolonial Swahili society. Based on field research and court testimony, Hirsch's book opposes the conventional view that women are powerless under Islamic law.

On the Relationship between Cultural Literacy and Scholastic Achievement among University Students in Secondary Education

The relationship between cultural literacy and scholastic achievement among 81 university students in secondary education was investigated. Cultural literacy was assessed by the American Cultural Literacy Test, an objective test of 100 multiple-choice items based on the terms in Hirsch's book on cultural literacy. Scholastic achievement was assessed by final examination score and the number of points received from the midterm and final examinations and the term paper used in an introductory course in educational psychology. The literacy test was reliable with a Kuder-Richardson 20 value of .94 and its scores correlated .55 with course point totals and .53 with final examination scores. In addition, the literacy test scores correlated .33 with the subjects' ages.

ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CULTURAL LITERACY AND SCHOLASTIC ACHIEVEMENT AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN SECONDARY EDUCATION

The relationship between cultural literacy and scholastic achievement among 81 university students in secondary education was investigated. Cultural literacy was assessed by the American Cultural Literacy Test, an objective test of 100 multiple-choice items based on the terms in Hirsch's book on cultural literacy. Scholastic achievement was assessed by final examination score and the number of points received from the midterm and final examinations and the term paper used in an introductory course in educational psychology. The literacy test was reliable with a Kuder-Richardson 20 value of .94 and its scores correlated .55 with course point totals and .53 with final examination scores. In addition, the literacy test scores correlated .33 with the subjects' ages.

An Investigation of Cultural Literacy among High School Students and Prospective High School Teachers

Given the large increase of knowledge as well as changing views of how it is acquired, the question of what to teach students is of pivotal importance. One controversial suggestion, that of cultural literacy in Hirsch's 1987 book, was considered here. An attempt was made to validate an objective test based on the terms in Hirsch's book and to measure the effect of schooling on the construct, cultural literacy. The test was reliable and valid; scores on cultural literacy increased with education. In addition, test scores correlated strongly with other measures of academic success, i.e., scores on the American Cultural Literacy Test, correlated .77 with scores on the verbal aptitude part of the Scholastic Aptitude Test and .63 with high school grade point average.

The Arbitration Mechanism of the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes by Moshe Hirsch, and ICSID Reports. Vol. 1. edited by R. Rayfuse; consulting editor E. Lauter-Pacht

The International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes was created by the 1965 Convention on the Settlement of Disputes between States and nationals of other States with the aim of encouraging foreign investments by providing investors and host States with a mechanism for resolving disputes between them. Since the Centre was founded, its arbitration tribunals and ad hoc committees have produced just over 30 awards and decisions which, despite their relatively small number, have demonstrated the value of the Convention and made a significant contribution to international law. The volumes under review are both concerned with the work of the Centre and will be valuable additions to the library of anyone with an interest in this area. Hirsch's book is an introduction to the Convention's arbitration arrangements and, although quite short, covers its main features, together with the way in which it has been used and developed in practice,...

Critical reflections on Hirsch and cultural literacy

Early in his book Cultural Literacy, E. D. Hirsch, Jr. reaches two conclusions. They concern the lack of knowledge among modern youth and the impossibility of teaching reading and writing divorced from specific content. It is upon these two conclusions that I shall concentrate in this paper. Custom suggests that page 8 is a little early to arrive at conclusions of this type. The data supporting them only follow in a subsequent chapter (pp. 41-47). Yet this is the nature of Hirsch's book: journalistic, impressionistic, and totally convinced of the rectitude of the views advanced: namely, that reading and writing can be taught in schools by a common curriculum imparting the basic information constituting cultural literacy and embodying the norms and values of yesteryear when most people could read and write. These views clearly appealed to the Exxon Education Foundation, who funded Hirsch's research, and to Dr. William Bennett, former Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities and Secretary of Education to President Ronald Reagan, who has championed Hirsch's ideas in the corridors of power. Both responses, following an earlier Hirsch article in The American Scholar, "pulled me away from my ordinary scholarly concerns and into educational activism" (p. ix). Hirsch's book is not a "scholarly" work that painstakingly argues for conclusions that are evaluated in the light of conflicting evidence. Cultural Literacy is a work of "educational activism" in which the author advocates views aimed at advancing the interests of the elites holding political and economic power. For this purpose Hirsch uses the rhetoric of a conservative populism: conservative because he wishes to return to a common or "extensive curriculum" in order to revive the flagging "national vocabulary" (p. 139) and

The course in classical rhetoric: Definition, development, direction

Chapman/Tate descriptive survey of 38 doctoral programs in rhetoric and composition has given us valuable information about these programs, which, for the most part, have sprung up only within the last ten years. survey, published in the Spring 1987 Review (124-86), revealed our programs' deep structure; it also has raised some questions about the definition, development and direction of our doctoral programs in rhetoric and composition. Few of the 38 programs that sent written materials for the survey listed classical rhetoric as core requirement, and almost half listed no history of rhetoric courses. However, 35 of the 38 programs listed theories of composition course. Because the availability of, as well as the teaching approach to, classical rhetoric can show the foundations on which our programs are built and the theoretical directions they may be taking, I prepared questionnaire on the classical rhetoric course offered in English departments, mailed it to 41 doctoral programs in rhetoric and composition, and eventually received 37 completed questionnaires. survey results not only reveal some foundations and direction of our programs in rhetoric and composition but also point out areas for further study. Does the program offer course in classical rhetoric and, if so, is the course part of the core requirement were two of the primary survey questions. Twenty-eight out of the 37 programs (76%) that sent written materials reported they offer course either in classical rhetoric or wherein substantial part is devoted to classical Eight (23%) do not offer the course, but in six of these eight the course is offered in Speech Communication. Two programs reported that the course is listed but not taught. And two programs reported the course is not offered at all. Four programs reported that the course offered in the English Department is also offered in Speech Communication. 76 percent of programs offering the course differ from the Chapman/Tate percentages because some of the 28 programs defined theirs as course in classical rhetoric where only one-third, about five weeks, or less, is devoted to classical These courses are, in the words of one respondent, a rush through rhetoric. Some courses, titled Rhetoric and (or Composition and Rhetoric), are actually topic courses that can take any focus. In one program it depends on who teaches the course whether it is history of rhetoric or the teaching of composition. Course names are quite varied. Only six are called History of Rhetoric, and two are named History and Theories. (The naming of one course title, survey respondent told me, has long and hilarious story. In 1976 the course had been The of Rhetoric, but that's the title of Richards' book, so the title was changed to Philosophy of Composition, which became the title of Hirsch's book, so the program changed it to its present title, The Rhetorical Tradition and the Teaching of Composition, at which point Knoblauch and Brannon appeared.) Other course titles are Theory and Practice of Rhetoric, Classical and Modern Discourse, Major Rhetorical Texts, Historical Studies, Rhetoric of Written Discourse. I was somewhat surprised that more of the course names didn't have the word written in the title to distinguish the course from the one offered in Speech for the last 75 years. Perhaps crossing departmental lines in the teaching of rhetoric is not the problem it was in the 70's. This subject itself would make an interesting study. classical rhetoric course is core requirement in 50 percent of the programs in contrast to the 91 percent of programs requiring composition theory. (In one program classical rhetoric is required, but it's offered only in Speech Communication.) These percentages suggest that we cannot assume the study of classical rhetoric as foundational for composition studies in our doctoral programs. In fact, it is possible for student to have Ph.D. specialty in rhetoric and composition without having had course in classical question here for further study is, then, how are we to define the rhetoric/composition speialist? next series of survey questions I asked focused on the frequency of the course offering, length of time it has been offered in the program, qualifications of the faculty who teach it, average enrollment and area of stuident specialty. In the majority of programs, the course is offered every other year and has been offered only within the last ten years. Usually, only one person teaches the course, faculty

A Cross-Cultural Approach to Literacy: The Immigrant Experience

The term literacy has been an evolving concept in this country. We have been concerned with insuring that every American citizen become functionally literate; that is, we want everyone to be able to read signs and posters, complete job applications, read directions, and the like. We have also been concerned with improving literacy as more broadly defined by our schools: we want to insure that students who graduate are able to read newspapers, reports, and magazines, and to write memos, letters, and simple reports. E. D. Hirsch's book on cultural literacy has raised another concern: the need for students to become literate

Positional Satisfaction and State Welfare

Fred Hirsch's book, The Social Limits of Growth (1977) has proved enormously fruitful in provoking and structuring debate about the relationship between economic development and individual satisfaction in advanced democracies. In this paper, we attempt to review the approach of the book, to explain why it is so influential and to test one aspect of the argument.

Malthus and the social limits to growth

This paper seeks to demonstrate a tradition of argument that starts with Malthus' writings on population and on the environmental limits to growth, and continues in today's neo-conservative writings on ‘mobilized demand’ and the social limits to growth. The basic Malthusian theorem shows a concern with effective or mobilized demand. In this form, the theorem can readily accommodate changes that so-called neo-conservatives were to introduce in centuries that followed. Today the debate on the perfectibility of man, and the end-point of progress continues; only the terms of reference have changed. A key modification is the switch of concerns from physical to social limits. This switch is exemplified in Fred Hirsch's book, Social Limits to Growth, which introduces the useful concept of ‘positional goods’ to help account for the unsatisfiability of modern wants. The paper concludes with a quote from Keynes, which clearly establishes the line of development from Malthus to the neo-conservatives; and with a question, asked by one of Keynes's critics, that can be addressed to the entire tradition Malthus founded.

Dr. S. A. Hirsch's Book of Essays

Dr. S. A. Hirsch's Book of Essays