This book represents the beginning dialogue and critique of social, political, economic, and historical forms of hegemony operating in the adult education field. Twenty-three chapters are grouped into five sections. Section I, Deconstructing Exclusion and Inclusion in Adult Education, offers a dialogue on hegemony and critiques the philosophical, sociolinguistic, and historical foundations of the field that have made issues of class, race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation invisible in the current mainstream adult education literature. The first five chapters are: "Opening the Gates: Reflections on Power, Hegemony, Language, and the Status Quo" (Sissel, Sheared); "Incorporating Postmodernist Perspectives into Adult Education" (Hemphill); "Challenging Adult Learning: A Feminist Perspective" (Flannery, Hayes); "Talking About Whiteness: 'Adult Learning Principles' and the Invisible Norm" (Shore); and "An Invisible Presence, Silenced Voices: African Americans in the Adult Education Professoriate" (Smith, Colin). Part II addresses the function of adult learning within certain important social and historical movements and phenomena. The next five chapters are: "African-American Market Woman: Her Past, Our Future" (Smith); "Creating an Intellectual Basis for Friendship: Practice and Politics in a White Women's Study Group" (Hugo); "Northern Philanthropy's Ideological Influence on African-American Adult Education in the Rural South" (Chapman); "Struggling to Learn, Learning to Struggle: Workers, Workplace Learning, and the Emergence of Human Resource Development" (Schied); and "Role of Adult Education in Workplace Ageism" (Liu, Rees). Part III poses critical questions about the adult basic education context in four settings: "Communities in the Classroom: Critical Reflections on Adult Education in an Appalachian Community" (Bingman, et al.); "Education, Incarceration, and the Marginalization of Women" (Baird); "Adult Basic Education: Equipped for the Future or for Failure?" (Amstutz); and "Teaching as Political Practice" (Bounous). Five chapters in Part IV focus on culture and its influence on learning processes, settings, and outcomes: "African-American Women of Inspiration" (Brown); "Through the Eyes of a Latina: Professional Women in Adult Education" (Marcano); "By My Own Eyes: A Story of Learning and Culture" (Harper); "Using Queer Cultural Studies to Transgress Adult Educational Space" (Grace); and "Feminist Perspectives on Adult Education: Constantly Shifting Identities in Constantly Changing Times" (Tisell). Part V challenges adult educators to critically examine their aims and agendas in four chapters: "Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Confronting Who 'We' Are" (Childs); "Technologies of Learning at Work: Disciplining the Self" (Garrick, Solomon); "Political Economy of Adult Education: Implications for Practice" (Jeria); and "What Does Research, Resistance, and Inclusion Mean for Adult Education Practice? A Reflective Response" (Sheared, Sissel). An index and contributor notes are appended. (YLB)