Paul Hendrickson's book, The Living and the Dead, considers the relation between the impersonal forces that we often identify with history and the individual choices and accidents that relate to the personalities that make history. For Hendrickson, those personalities can be seen in Robert McNamara, who serves as the center of his story, and also in Norman Morrison (the Quaker who immolated himself at the Pentagon), the unnamed artist on a ferry off of Martha's Vineyard, who attempts the throw McNamara overboard, and three other i?individuals. If you have read this book, what do you think of the lessons are for understanding politics, social change, and personal responsibility? Does your answer offer any insight into the value of studying history, and what that value is? Can you extend your insights to the rise and influence of Ronald Regan, a former actor and Truman Democrat who lost his faith in the New Deal values of Roosevelt during the 1950's, or George W. Bush, who directly appealed to the Regan legacy, and who has profoundly changed the shape of American involvement in world affairs? Does the Obama presidency, which followed a global crisis of American deregulated capital, the failure of Iraq and Afghanistan policies, including revelations of torture, require a new understanding of American history? If so, what is that? If not, why?
The Living and the Dead
- Thread starter Kristan
- Start date
anart
A Disturbance in the Force
Hi Kristan, your duplicate post in the History section was removed, since posting the same post in more than one section of the forum is considered spamming. Welcome to the forum and we look forward to your introduction in the newbies section (no need for personal information, just how you found the forum and why you're here). Thanks. :)