Understanding Scotland

Scottish traditional music has been through a successful revival in the mid-twentieth century and has now entered a professionalised and public space. Devolution in the UK and the surge of political debate surrounding the independence referendum in Scotland in 2014 led to a greater scrutiny of regional and national identities within the UK, set within the wider context of cultural globalisation. This volume brings together a range of authors that sets out to explore the increasingly plural and complex notions of Scotland, as performed in and through traditional music. Traditional music has played an increasingly prominent role in the public life of Scotland, mirrored in other Anglo-American traditions. This collection principally explores this movement from historically text-bound musical authenticity towards more transient sonic identities that are blurring established musical genres and the meaning of what constitutes ‘traditional’ music today. The volume therefore provides a cohesive set of perspectives on how traditional music performs Scottishness at this crucial moment in the public life of an increasingly (dis)United Kingdom.

First published in 1992. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Does Scotland have a problem with racism? With its 'civic nationalism' and 'welcoming' attitude towards migrants and refugees, Scotland is understood to be relatively free of structural and institutional racism. As the contributors to this book show, such generalisations fail to withstand serious investigation. Their research into the historical record and contemporary reality tells a very different story. Opening up a debate on a subject that has been shut down for too long, No Problem Here gathers together the views of academics, activists and anti-racism campaigners who argue that it is vital that the issue of racism be brought into the centre of public discourse. Scotland's role in maintaining and extending slavery across the British Empire is finally beginning to receive the attention it deserves. Yet there is much more that needs to be said about racism in Scotland today.

Written by a leading sociologist of Scotland, this ground-breaking new introduction is a comprehensive account of the social, political, economic and cultural processes at work in contemporary Scottish society. At a time of major uncertainty and transformation The New Sociology of Scotland explores every aspect of Scottish life. Placed firmly in the context of globalisation, the text: examines a broad range of topics including race and ethnicity, social inequality, national identity, health, class, education, sport, media and culture, among many others. looks at the ramifications of recent political events such as British General Election of 2015, the Scottish parliament election of May 2016, and the Brexit referendum of June 2016. uses learning features such as further reading and discussion questions to stimulate students to engage critically with issues raised. Written in a lucid and accessible style, The New Sociology of Scotland is an indispensable guide for students of sociology and politics.

Scotland in Theory offers new ways of reading Scottish texts and culture within the context of an altered political framework and a changing sense of national identity. With the re-establishment of a Parliament in Edinburgh, issues of nationality and nationalism can be looked at afresh. It is timely now to revisit representations of Scottish culture in cinematography and literature, and also to examine aspects of gender, sexuality and ideology that have shaped how Scots have come to understand themselves. Established and younger critics use a variety of theoretical approaches here to catch an authentic sense of a post-modern Scotland in the process of change. Literature and the arts provide radical ways of knowing what Scotland, in theory, could become. The collection will be of interest to teachers and students of Scottish and English literature, literary theory, cultural and media analysis, and the history of ideas. Contributors include Eleanor Bell, Kasia Boddy, Cairns Craig, Thomas Docherty, Christopher Harvie, Ellen Raïssa-Jackson, Willy Maley, Gavin Miller, Tom Nairn, Sarah Neely, Laurence Nicoll, Berthold Schoene, Anne McManus Scriven, A.J.P. Thomson, Ronald Turnbull, Christopher Whyte.

Social justice and social policy in Scotland offers a critical engagement with the state of social policy in one of the devolved nations of the UK, a decade after the introduction of devolution. Promoting greater social justice has been held up as a key vision of successive Scottish administrations since devolution began. It is argued throughout this important book that the analysis of Scottish social policy must therefore be located in wider debates around social injustice as well as about how the devolution process affects the making, implementation and impact of social policy. Social justice and social policy in Scotland focuses on a diverse range of topics and issues, including income inequalities, work and welfare, criminal justice, housing, education, health and poverty, each reflecting the themes of social inequality and social justice. This book will be essential reading for academics, researchers, policy makers and practitioners as well as students of social policy and of society in Scotland and other devolved nations.

The question of sectarianism in Scotland belongs within a wider framework than it has hitherto been placed. It offers insights into continuing, indeed pressing, debates about religious identity and civil and political society in the modern world. This book questions the view that religion and politics do not, and cannot, mix in pluralistic, tolerant and increasingly secular societies, and reveals that memories - bitter memories - can outlive, and obscure, the demise of actual conflict.