Street Corner Society

Street Corner Society

1 . What is the story about ?

The story of ``Street Corner Society ' is an account of the Italian

American slum , named as ``Cornerville , at Boston 's North End . It has

been the model for urban ethnography for five decades . The book has been

hailed as one of the best in the subject of sociological research . It

set standard for field research . It is also a source of intellectual

challenge for the research scholars . The methods adopted have been used

with benefit for research in most of the American cities . Therefore , the

contents of the book have been acknowledged as the ground-breaking work .

The book has also been hailed as ``the bible of sociology '

2 . Describe the style of the book . Is the style of the book reflective

of the author 's cultural background ?

The book provides rare insights into the sociological phenomena of the

period to which the story of the book belongs . It highlights the

potential dangers in ethnographic studies . It also provides

interpretation of the social organization taking into account many

subcultures that make the society . The book deviated from the classic

approach to research and adopted the nature of participant observation

methodology . It did not account for the society as a whole , but split it

into small groups and that resulted in substantial advancement of small

group studies , and lastly , the prevailing belief that the slums areas

were mostly disorganized stood demolished . The author tendered evidence

that they were actually highly organized and the basis of such

organization was racketeers , gangs and on par with them was politician

as well . The author 's first research assistant was a gang leader and he

made the moving and thought-provoking statement , ``The Whyte Impact on

the Underdog ' The study conducted by Whyte was in-depth , embracing all

the aspect of the subculture that he paid attention to , like

educational , social and...