Street Corner Society; The Social Structure of an Italian Slum
by William Foote Whyte
Category: Gangs

Street Corner Society is one of a handful of works that can justifiably be called classics of sociological research. William Foote Whyte's account of the Italian American slum he called "Cornerville"--Boston's North End--has been the model for urban ethnography for fifty years. By mapping the intricate social worlds of street gangs and "corner boys," Whyte was among the first to demonstrate that a poor community need not be socially disorganized. His writing set a standard for vivid portrayals of real people in real situations. And his frank discussion of his methodology--participant observation--has served as an essential casebook in field research for generations of students and scholars. This fiftieth anniversary edition includes a new preface and revisions to the methodological appendix. In a new section on the book's legacy, Whyte responds to recent challenges to the validity, interpretation, and uses of his data. "The Whyte Impact on the Underdog," the moving statement by a gang leader who became the author's first research assistant, is preserved. "Street Corner Society broke new ground and set a standard for field research in American cities that remains a source of intellectual challenge."--Robert Washington, Reviews in Anthropology