Whilst rural idylls have dominated some discussions of rural social difference, little attention has been paid to rural utopias. Imagined, material and discursive experiences of utopian rural ideals are critically examined in this paper. It takes as its focus the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival--an annual US womyn-only festival--in order to…

Geographical, economic, social and cultural barriers to accessing services in rural areas are widely reported. Less widely discussed are dilemmas posed by individual and community reluctance to address sensitive health issues. This article, focusing on the highly sensitive area of mental health, and employing a participatory action approach,…

Responds to Philo's article calling for rural studies to focus research on marginalized groups and communities within rural areas. Recommends a reconstructed sociology of postmodernism that would end the use of global concepts such as "rural" and focus on the ways in which power relations contribute to the construction of rurality (and…

Responds to an article by Murdoch and Pratt appearing in this journal issue that questions the view that rural research needs to focus on marginalized groups and communities and that calls for a reconstructed sociology of postmodernism. Clarifies the author's views on postmodernism and the concept of "rurality" and his theoretical…