Concepts of Identity
Historical and Contemporary Images and Portraits of Self and Family (Icon Editions)
Concepts of identity are complex and changing, and in this book Katherine Hoffman explores and explains portraits and images of individuals and families from ancient Egypt to the present - more than two-thirds of the book covers the twentieth century. She include images from painting, sculpture, photography, film, TV, and other media; there are 75 illustrations integrated with the text. The book provides perspectives on the identity of family and self through an analysis of historical and contemporary portraits and images - a mirror of society and culture, their attitudes and values. The introduction discusses families and portraits; Part I deals with the ancient and medieval worlds and Renaissance through the nineteenth century; and Part II, the main part of the book, covers the period from 1900 to 1945, as well as the late forties and fifties, the sixties, seventies, eighties, and early nineties. Also included are an epilogue on identities, images, and stories; notes and bibliography sections; and index.
Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.
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What the reading experience may hold
A fuller profile for choosing with more confidence—not just another copy of the preview.
Nonfiction
Use these as starting points rather than limits; the most memorable books often stretch beyond their catalog labels.
No specific content concerns can be confirmed from the available English catalog information. Consult a publisher or reader-supplied guide when detailed warnings matter.
These notes are inferred from available catalog information and may not be complete. Check a publisher or reader-supplied guide if you need comprehensive warnings.
Balanced tone · Steady pace
A comfortable full-length choice for steady daily reading.
A good fit if…
Readers who want a thoughtful experience and enjoy noticing the connections beneath a book’s surface story.
This book's DNA
A visual estimate based on this edition's categories, description, and length. Select a star to explore the signals.
This signal is descriptive, not a rating. It helps compare the kind of reading experience this edition may offer.
Spoiler-Free Emotional Arc
A broad estimate of the book’s emotional rhythm, shown without story events or outcomes.
This visualization is an interpretive estimate based on catalog description, categories, tone, pace, and content signals. It does not describe specific scenes.
A quick reading snapshot
Edition facts and catalog signals to help you decide whether this book fits what you want to read next.
- ISBN-13
- 978-0-0643-0211-1
- Language
- English
- Edition record
- OL9246207M
A more thoughtful way into this book
This guide uses the edition details and category signals above to help you choose deliberately. It does not replace the author's work or a full review.
A comfortable full-length choice for steady daily reading.
Begin with its place in Nonfiction, then notice where the book resists that label.
Read for connection, not completion.
Mark one passage that sharpens the book's central concern and one that complicates it. That tension often reveals more than a quick summary.
Three questions to carry with you
- Whose perspective organizes the story, and whose perspective remains outside it?
- Which sources or lived experiences carry the author’s central argument?
- How does the book change the way you understand its larger subject?
Editorial framework by Wesley Bryan, BookenDeX Founder and Editor.
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