In this remarkable collection of essays, Michael Burawoy develops the extended case method by connecting his own experiences among workers of the world to the great transformations of the twentieth century--the rise and fall of the Soviet Union and its satellites, the reconstruction of U.S....

This collection examines cloth as a material and consumer object from early periods to the twenty-first century, across multiple oceanic sites-from Zanzibar, Muscat and Kampala to Ajanta, Srivijaya and Osaka. It moves beyond usual focuses on a single fibre (such as cotton) or place (such as...