Inside Story. Lois Presser

Stories have persuasive powers: they can influence how a person thinks and acts. <I>Inside Story </I>explores the capacity of stories to direct our thinking, heighten our emotions, and thereby motivate people to do harm to others and to tolerate harm done by others.&#160;From terrorist violence to &ldquo;mere&rdquo; complacency with institutionalized harm, the book weds case study to cross-disciplinary theory. It builds upon timely work in the field of narrative criminology and provides a thorough analysis of how stories can promote or inhibit harmful action. By offering a sociological analysis of the emotional yet intersubjective experience of dangerous stories, the book fleshes out the perplexing mechanics of cultural influence on crime and other forms of harm.<BR /> &#160;