Fixing Motorcycles in Post-Repair Societies
Technology, Aesthetics and Gender
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Berghahn Books
Published:10th Mar '23
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

Most social science studies on automobility have focused on the production, usage, identity construction and aesthetic improvements of personal means of transportation. What happens if we shift the focus to the labour, knowledge and social relations that go into the unavoidable moments of maintenance and repair? Taking motorcycling in Romania as an ethnographic entry point, this book documents how bikers handle the inevitable moments of malfunction and breakdown. Using both mobile and sedentary research methods, the book describes the joys and troubles experienced by amateur mechanics, professional mechanics and untechnical men and women when fixing bikes.
“Centered in Romania, the volume provides a unique commentary on the cultural and social relations of a post-repair society…Recommended.”• Choice
“The book’s focus on the history and development of motorcycling in Romania makes it a valuable case study. Additionally, the book introduces important general theses about the post-repair period…This study offers an inspiring perspective for thinking about technological development. It encourages us to consider new angles on the impacts of technological changes on society and how they influence it, as convincingly demonstrated in the book (for example, through reflections on gender issues).”• The Journal of Transport History
“A welcome addition to a host of areas of academic study, including, but not limited to the transformation of an analogue to a digital world and how that change has affected economies, social structures, gender relations and concepts of personal identity.”• Steven Alford, Nova Southeastern University
“The book draws attention to an overlooked area of mobility studies—repair and maintenance. It inventively demonstrates the social and political dimensions of technology and is especially attentive to gender distinctions and differences.”• Suzanne Ferriss, Nova Southeastern University
ISBN: 9781800738775
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
166 pages