1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910779253503321

Autore

Jablonski Nina G

Titolo

Living color [[electronic resource] ] : the biological and social meaning of skin color / / Nina G. Jablonski

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Berkeley, : University of California Press, c2012

ISBN

1-280-88001-5

9786613721327

0-520-95377-0

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (285 p.)

Disciplina

573.5

Soggetti

Human skin color

Human skin color - Physiological aspects

Human skin color - Social aspects

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

pt. 1. Biology -- pt. 2. Society.

Sommario/riassunto

Living Color is the first book to investigate the social history of skin color from prehistory to the present, showing how our body's most visible trait influences our social interactions in profound and complex ways. In a fascinating and wide-ranging discussion, Nina G. Jablonski begins with the biology and evolution of skin pigmentation, explaining how skin color changed as humans moved around the globe. She explores the relationship between melanin pigment and sunlight, and examines the consequences of rapid migrations, vacations, and other lifestyle choices that can create mismatches between our skin color and our environment.Richly illustrated, this book explains why skin color has come to be a biological trait with great social meaning- a product of evolution perceived by culture. It considers how we form impressions of others, how we create and use stereotypes, how negative stereotypes about dark skin developed and have played out through history-including being a basis for the transatlantic slave trade. Offering examples of how attitudes about skin color differ in the U.S., Brazil, India, and South Africa, Jablonski suggests that a knowledge of the evolution and social importance of skin color can help eliminate color-



based discrimination and racism.