Carolyn Marvin is a professor and author that specializes in

communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

, culture and media, political communication, and technology and society. Marvin is currently the Frances Yates Emeritus Professor of Communication at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

's Annenberg School for Communication. Marvin is the author of two major publications, ''When Old Technologies Were New'' and ''Blood Sacrifice and the Nation: Totem Rituals and the American Flag''. Carolyn Marvin

Research and reviews

Marvin published ''When Old Technologies Were New'' in 1988. The book discusses topics such as communications, media, and the history of telecommunications as Marvin explores how early technologies impacted society, culture, and modern day communications. The book did receive some critiques from academic sources. Richard Rudolph from the

University of Massachusetts Boston The University of Massachusetts Boston (stylized as UMass Boston) is a Public university, public research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the only public research university in Boston and the third-largest campus in the five-campus Un ...

praises Marvin's work overall but notes her use of stories rather than analysis at times as well as his thoughts on what other information could have been included about societal changes. Brain Winston of

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

writes that Marvin makes many interesting points about denying technological determinist vision and how the spread of electricity created a divide between those who had and could control electricity and those who could not. He also critiques the first chapter of the book saying that it does not make claims as important as the rest of the work and points out that he feels more evidence might be seen as being needed. A review by Kenneth Lipartito in the ''

Journal of Social History ''The Journal of Social History'' was founded in 1967 and has been edited since then by Peter Stearns. The journal covers social history in all regions and time periods. Articles in the journal frequently combine sociohistorical analysis between ...

'' discusses Marvin's book and poses strengths such as her textual analysis but also her weaknesses in sources and how many of them are potentially biased as trade journals and unclear as to their notability or reach.

Susan Smulyan Susan Smulyan is professor of American Studies and former director of the John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Cultural Heritage at Brown University. A graduate of Yale University, Smulyan's research focuses on U.S. popular culture ...

praises Marvin's historical analysis and the potential interest to historians and communication and media scholars alike in her review in the

University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including ''The Chicago Manual of Style'', ...

's peer reviewed journal ''Isis''. David Nye, an associate professor at the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

, commends Marvin's work overall in his review in the journal ''

Technology and Culture ''Technology and Culture'' is a quarterly academic journal founded in 1959. It is an official publication of the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT), whose members routinely refer to it as "T&C." Besides scholarly articles and critical e ...

'' and compliments the thoroughness of her research and the connections she poses between communication, technology, and society. Marvin's other book, ''Blood Sacrifice and the Nation: Totem Rituals and the American Flag'', also received reviews and criticism. William Swatos, a scholar of religious studies, critiques Marvin and her co-author David Ingle for their belief in

totemism A totem (from oj, ᑑᑌᒼ, italics=no or ''doodem'') is a spirit being, sacred object, or symbol that serves as an emblem of a group of people, such as a family, clan, lineage (anthropology), lineage, or tribe, such as in the Anishinaabe clan ...

and writes that their work is less analysis than just writing. Though the book did receive criticism, it also received praise. Heidi Hamilton of Augustana College (now

Augustana University Augustana University is a private Lutheran university in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The university identifies 1860 as the year of its founding, the same as its Rock Island, Illinois Swedish-heritage sister school, Augustana College. It derives ...

) praises Marvin and Ingle's work in the journal, Rhetoric and Public Affairs, for using the lens of totemism to view the militarism and violence in America.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marvin, Carolyn Wikipedia Student Program Living people Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania faculty Year of birth missing (living people)