So, yesterday was the official kick-off of the Keep Portland Weird festival here in Paris, which meant that I had a reading/screening in the...
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This is not an 'easy' read, but neither is the phenomenon that Fermaglich sets out to examine.
Contrary to what we might guess from a 21st century perspective, there was indeed a time when people were openly trying to determine what 'allowed' the Holocaust and what it might 'mean' for the future of democracy, human nature, social hierarchies, etc. This book tracks the development of four arguments, made by liberal activists and scientists in the 1950s and 1960s, and the ways that their authors employed analogies to concentration camps, mass society, and totalitarianism to push for progressive change. Stanley Elkins' theories of slavery, Betty Friedan's 'Feminine Mystique', Stanley Miligram's Obedience Experiments, and Robert Jay Lifton's psychoanalysis of survivorship.
Fermaglich goes deep into primary texts, first drafts, notes, and correspondence, while offering a compelling voice that weaves her theme together beautifully. The chapter on Milgram is particularly amazing. It is hard not to flinch at the 'political-incorrectness' of the arguments these individuals made - but that is part of Fermaglich's point. Their clumsy but (of course) well-intentioned ideas should be seen as strongly influencing the socio-political circuses we see played out before us today.
While this book has been (rightly) aimed toward Judaic Studies, it could easily be argued as belonging to a class of studies that is much lacking in contemporary writing: a sociolinguistic analysis and critique of analogical thinking in progressive politics. Yes, it is 'academic' in its approach, but more rewarding than most non-fiction I've picked up in years. Amazing.
A recent NYT book review of 'The Neighborhood Project' rightly comments that it is "premature." Truly, I am confused why Dr. Wilson decided to publish this (quite lengthy) book when his own neighborhood project in Binghamton, NY is still in its fetal stage. There are examples of the research he and his team have conducted and they are fraught with problems (e.g. counting Halloween and Christmas decorations as a measure of 'prosociality'). The town itself plays an even lesser role in Wilson's argument. Well-known sources of Binghamton's woes are breezed over, while the he devotes an astounding number of pages to descriptions of his office, his bicycle outings, and his treehouse. Recent, life-shaking events in Binghamton (including a flood in Summer 2006 and a mass murder in Spring 2009) are left out entirely. These issues may not trouble those outside of Binghamton, but they are glaring faults in his representation of this town.
Annoyingly, what Dr. Wilson substitutes for historical research or positive scientific results make the book even more broadly unsatisfactory and tiring. He slips continuously between cliches, platitudes, personal anecdotes about his children and graduate students, and exhausting praises of his colleagues' lives and research. While some readers find his writing delightful, I find it tedious, patronizing, and empty. Given what is missing from 'The Neighborhood Project', Dr. Wilson apparently did not write it 'for' the people of Binghamton. But I am at a loss to pinpoint an audience for this kind of prose. Obviously, I am not among them.
To his credit, Dr. Wilson's optimism and idealism regarding evolutionary theory and science-at-large are here in spades. He may even be more breathlessly (but not word-lessly) excited than he was in 2007's 'Evolution for Everyone'. In contrast to writers like Richard Dawkins, Dr. Wilson's tone is bubbly in the extreme. He clearly goes to lengths not to be the public fire-brand that Dawkins has become. But, in the latter's defense, a reader is never unclear as to WHY Dawkins wrote the books he has, or what the point might be in reading them. I can hardly say the same for Dr. Wilson's book, which repeatedly left me feeling like I was wasting my time. Not recommended.
Kelves' history of eugenic ideas and policy is incredibly informative and often startling. He deals even-handedly with a wide variety of very difficult topics, such as sterilization laws, scientific racism, and the role of professional scientists in the Holocaust. Though its author obviously put years into meticulous research, I found this book perfectly readable, and came away with a deep sense of how science, religion, government, and family were entangled in the United States and Europe, throughout the last two centuries. My only complaint on Kelves' style is his sometimes overly psychoanalytic descriptions of the book's main actors. While his approach certainly humanizes the people and movements he explores, I sometimes found myself skimming through passages on the childhoods of genetic scientists. This said, Kelves consistently offers a wealth of useful information, including 100+ pages of notes, an appendix on his research methods, and supplementary discussion on doing archival research in state and federal records. For anyone interested in the history of science, this book is a goldmine. Moreover, during the present controversies over stem cell research, genomics, and social welfare, I would not be surprised if Kelves' book resurfaces as an important resource for teachers and students in history, anthropology, sociology, and medical ethics.
This is such a lovely and powerful novel, I am perplexed that it is not as well known as it could be, particularly among fans of Vladimir Nabokov, Milan Kundera, and even John Irving. Shifting between diary entries and third person narration, this is a story of Abel Tiffauges - a French outsider and outcast whose predatory nature finds a home within the Third Reich. The chapters of Abel's life are linked through profound re-interpretations of the Legend of St. Christopher - the giant of Canann who carried Christ the Child across a river and nearly drowned beneath the child's weight. 'Abel the Giant' too finds himself unintentionally placed in charge of the innocent - as a collector of carrier pigeons, a game warden, and guardian for orphans of the Reich. While it is chilling to explore Abel's obsession with possessing and controlling innocence and beauty, Tournier delivers a counter-argument to his protagonist's predation: like St. Christopher, Abel feels the weight of the innocent upon his life. Though he is a villain, he must save his victims, even though it will finally destroy him. The novel is thus ultimately about the crushing symbolic powers of innocence and redemption. Reading it has been a unique and changing experience for me.
This was one of the most important books of my childhood. Bubber is a young lemming who questions the unquestionable - the instinctual urge felt by all around him to conform and follow the majority, even to mass suicide. As Bubber looks for answers, he becomes more and more an outsider, even to his friends and family. Arkin draws careful historical analogies in this stark but often funny and touching story. Like the best children's books, it can be pretty scary, and Bubber struggles quite a lot as he resists mass opinion and hysteria. However, all told, this is a tale about believing in yourself, and one that is entirely unique in the genre. An honest and unpatronizing book for smart, courageous kids.
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American Dreams and Nazi Nightmares: Early Holocaust Consciousness and Liberal America, 1957-1965 (Brandeis Series in American Jewish History, Culture and Life) by Kirsten Fermaglich
hazel-rah, January 16, 2012
This is not an 'easy' read, but neither is the phenomenon that Fermaglich sets out to examine.Contrary to what we might guess from a 21st century perspective, there was indeed a time when people were openly trying to determine what 'allowed' the Holocaust and what it might 'mean' for the future of democracy, human nature, social hierarchies, etc. This book tracks the development of four arguments, made by liberal activists and scientists in the 1950s and 1960s, and the ways that their authors employed analogies to concentration camps, mass society, and totalitarianism to push for progressive change. Stanley Elkins' theories of slavery, Betty Friedan's 'Feminine Mystique', Stanley Miligram's Obedience Experiments, and Robert Jay Lifton's psychoanalysis of survivorship.
Fermaglich goes deep into primary texts, first drafts, notes, and correspondence, while offering a compelling voice that weaves her theme together beautifully. The chapter on Milgram is particularly amazing. It is hard not to flinch at the 'political-incorrectness' of the arguments these individuals made - but that is part of Fermaglich's point. Their clumsy but (of course) well-intentioned ideas should be seen as strongly influencing the socio-political circuses we see played out before us today.
While this book has been (rightly) aimed toward Judaic Studies, it could easily be argued as belonging to a class of studies that is much lacking in contemporary writing: a sociolinguistic analysis and critique of analogical thinking in progressive politics. Yes, it is 'academic' in its approach, but more rewarding than most non-fiction I've picked up in years. Amazing.
The Neighborhood Project: Using Evolution to Improve My City, One Block at a Time by David Wilson
hazel-rah, September 20, 2011
A recent NYT book review of 'The Neighborhood Project' rightly comments that it is "premature." Truly, I am confused why Dr. Wilson decided to publish this (quite lengthy) book when his own neighborhood project in Binghamton, NY is still in its fetal stage. There are examples of the research he and his team have conducted and they are fraught with problems (e.g. counting Halloween and Christmas decorations as a measure of 'prosociality'). The town itself plays an even lesser role in Wilson's argument. Well-known sources of Binghamton's woes are breezed over, while the he devotes an astounding number of pages to descriptions of his office, his bicycle outings, and his treehouse. Recent, life-shaking events in Binghamton (including a flood in Summer 2006 and a mass murder in Spring 2009) are left out entirely. These issues may not trouble those outside of Binghamton, but they are glaring faults in his representation of this town.Annoyingly, what Dr. Wilson substitutes for historical research or positive scientific results make the book even more broadly unsatisfactory and tiring. He slips continuously between cliches, platitudes, personal anecdotes about his children and graduate students, and exhausting praises of his colleagues' lives and research. While some readers find his writing delightful, I find it tedious, patronizing, and empty. Given what is missing from 'The Neighborhood Project', Dr. Wilson apparently did not write it 'for' the people of Binghamton. But I am at a loss to pinpoint an audience for this kind of prose. Obviously, I am not among them.
To his credit, Dr. Wilson's optimism and idealism regarding evolutionary theory and science-at-large are here in spades. He may even be more breathlessly (but not word-lessly) excited than he was in 2007's 'Evolution for Everyone'. In contrast to writers like Richard Dawkins, Dr. Wilson's tone is bubbly in the extreme. He clearly goes to lengths not to be the public fire-brand that Dawkins has become. But, in the latter's defense, a reader is never unclear as to WHY Dawkins wrote the books he has, or what the point might be in reading them. I can hardly say the same for Dr. Wilson's book, which repeatedly left me feeling like I was wasting my time. Not recommended.
In the Name of Eugenics: Genetics and the Uses of Human Heredity by Daniel J Kevles
hazel-rah, August 25, 2010
Kelves' history of eugenic ideas and policy is incredibly informative and often startling. He deals even-handedly with a wide variety of very difficult topics, such as sterilization laws, scientific racism, and the role of professional scientists in the Holocaust. Though its author obviously put years into meticulous research, I found this book perfectly readable, and came away with a deep sense of how science, religion, government, and family were entangled in the United States and Europe, throughout the last two centuries. My only complaint on Kelves' style is his sometimes overly psychoanalytic descriptions of the book's main actors. While his approach certainly humanizes the people and movements he explores, I sometimes found myself skimming through passages on the childhoods of genetic scientists. This said, Kelves consistently offers a wealth of useful information, including 100+ pages of notes, an appendix on his research methods, and supplementary discussion on doing archival research in state and federal records. For anyone interested in the history of science, this book is a goldmine. Moreover, during the present controversies over stem cell research, genomics, and social welfare, I would not be surprised if Kelves' book resurfaces as an important resource for teachers and students in history, anthropology, sociology, and medical ethics.Ogre (72 Edition) by Michel Tournier
hazel-rah, March 17, 2010
This is such a lovely and powerful novel, I am perplexed that it is not as well known as it could be, particularly among fans of Vladimir Nabokov, Milan Kundera, and even John Irving. Shifting between diary entries and third person narration, this is a story of Abel Tiffauges - a French outsider and outcast whose predatory nature finds a home within the Third Reich. The chapters of Abel's life are linked through profound re-interpretations of the Legend of St. Christopher - the giant of Canann who carried Christ the Child across a river and nearly drowned beneath the child's weight. 'Abel the Giant' too finds himself unintentionally placed in charge of the innocent - as a collector of carrier pigeons, a game warden, and guardian for orphans of the Reich. While it is chilling to explore Abel's obsession with possessing and controlling innocence and beauty, Tournier delivers a counter-argument to his protagonist's predation: like St. Christopher, Abel feels the weight of the innocent upon his life. Though he is a villain, he must save his victims, even though it will finally destroy him. The novel is thus ultimately about the crushing symbolic powers of innocence and redemption. Reading it has been a unique and changing experience for me.The Lemming Condition by Alan Arkin
hazel-rah, March 3, 2010
This was one of the most important books of my childhood. Bubber is a young lemming who questions the unquestionable - the instinctual urge felt by all around him to conform and follow the majority, even to mass suicide. As Bubber looks for answers, he becomes more and more an outsider, even to his friends and family. Arkin draws careful historical analogies in this stark but often funny and touching story. Like the best children's books, it can be pretty scary, and Bubber struggles quite a lot as he resists mass opinion and hysteria. However, all told, this is a tale about believing in yourself, and one that is entirely unique in the genre. An honest and unpatronizing book for smart, courageous kids.(0 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)
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