Why We Watch

Why We Watch is the first book to offer a careful look at why we are drawn to depictions of violence and why there is so large a market for violent entertainment. This arresting collection of essays examines the presence of violent imagery not just in contemporary America but across time from classical antiquity to the present and not only in film and television but in a fascinating array of cultural domains including literature religion fairy tales video games children''s toys photojournalism and sports. Why We Watch addresses a crucial but rarely considered aspect of the media-violence problem: Why is violent imagery so prevalent? The distinguished contributors hailing from fields such as anthropology history literary theory psychology communications and film criticism include Allen Guttmann Vicki Goldberg Maria Tatar Joanne Cantor J. Hoberman Clark McCauley Maurice Bloch Dolf Zillmann and the volume''s editor Jeffrey Goldstein. Together they aim to define what is distinctive about the culture of violence.Clear accessible and timely this is a book for all who are concerned with the multiple points of access to violent representation.