{"product_id":"fredric-wertham-and-the-critique-of-mass-culture-9781578068197","title":"Fredric Wertham and the Critique of Mass Culture","description":"\u003cp\u003eToo often remembered solely as the psychiatrist and cultural critic whose testimony in Senate subcommittees sparked the creation of the Comics Code, Fredric Wertham was a far more complex man. Author Bart Beaty traces the evolution of Wertham's attitudes toward popular culture and reassesses his place in the debate about pop culture's effects on youth and society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen \u003cem\u003eThe Seduction of the Innocent\u003c\/em\u003e was published in 1954, Wertham (1895-1981) became instantly known as an authority on child psychology. Although he had published several books before \u003cem\u003eSeduction\u003c\/em\u003e, its sharp criticism of popular culture in general--and comic books in particular--made it a touchstone for debate about issues of censorship, child protection, and freedom of speech.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFredric Wertham and the Critique of Mass Culture\u003c\/em\u003e, a fresh perspective on Wertham's career, reinterprets his intellectual legacy and challenges notions about his alleged cultural conservatism. Drawing upon Wertham's published works as well as his unpublished private papers, correspondence, and notes, Beaty reveals a man whose opinions, life, and career offer more subtlety of thought than previously assumed. In particular, the book examines Wertham's change of heart in the 1970s, when he began to claim that comics could be a positive influence in American society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Wertham that emerges is a critic who was significantly more progressive and multifaceted than his reputation would suggest.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBeaty, Bart:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - Bart Beaty is associate professor of communication and culture at the University of Calgary. His work has been published in the \u003ci\u003eComics Journal\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eInternational Journal of Comic Art\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eCanadian Journal of Communication\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eEssays in Canadian Writing\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eCanadian Review of American Studies\u003c\/i\u003e.","brand":"University Press of Mississippi","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50357069512978,"sku":"9781578068197","price":32.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_80e952ac-8782-40f8-a717-aa32a745a51b.jpg?v=1728316534","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/fredric-wertham-and-the-critique-of-mass-culture-9781578068197","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}