Uni Reading List
Index / 001 EN
Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right cover

Sociology

Sociology

Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right

Arlie Russell Hochschild

An ethnographic study of political feeling, social class, race, religion, and regional identity in a Louisiana community during a period of intense American polarization.

Difficulty Level
Intermediate
Academic Level
Undergraduate
political sociologyethnographyclassrace and ethnicitysocial polarization

01 / Classic Textbook Recommendation

Classic Textbook Recommendation

Citation

Hochschild, A. R. (2016). Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right. The New Press.

Why it belongs

Hochschild’s fieldwork shows how political positions are lived as moral narratives and emotional experiences. It is a strong model for studying polarization without reducing people to demographic labels or caricatures.

Core coverage

Read the book for its research relationship, interview practice, and account of the “deep story” behind political judgment. Ask how local experience interacts with institutions, media, race, and economic change.

Selection note

The University of Cambridge’s Sociology reading list for offer holders includes this ethnography: Cambridge sociology reading list.