Wrestling with the Angel of Democracy: On Being an American Citizen | 
| Author: Susan Griffin
Publisher: Trumpeter
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $4.95
You Save: $20.00 (80%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 101262
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 304
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.3
ISBN: 1590302974
Dewey Decimal Number: 323.60973
EAN: 9781590302972
ASIN: 1590302974
Publication Date: April 8, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: NEW! no bent pages, great book!! Has a remander mark on the upc
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Product Description
What does it mean to be a citizen of the United States? In this compelling and personal work, Susan Griffin—cultural historian, poet, public intellectual—blends history, cultural critique, and memoir to discover the essence of our democracy. From the Declaration of Independence to the war in Iraq, from Thomas Jefferson to John Muir to Jelly Roll Morton, Griffin charts the rise and fall of the American vision of freedom and equality.
Within the American psyche, Griffin explains, there is an enduring battle between the "psychology of empire," characterized by a desire for safety, order, and control, and the "psychology of democracy," characterized by equality, empathy, and truth-telling. "As a social body," she writes, " we are caught between conflicting desires, between the wish for freedom and the desire for order and safety, between the psychology of subjects and the psychology of citizens." Griffin's probing exploration of the history of American democracy is interwoven with sections of memoir exploring her own upbringing and political awakenings as the daughter of working-class parents in 1950s California.
Throughout this unique work—which gives special emphasis to the inner lives of pivotal historical figures—Griffin demonstrates that ultimately democracy is not only a system of governance, but, in its fullest form, represents a revolution in consciousness, one that is still unfolding today. We are still wrestling with the promise of democracy and, as American citizens, are deeply affected by the ongoing struggle between tyranny and freedom.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Disappointing June 6, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I greatly admired Griffin's CHORUS OF STONES and its deft handling of the personal and the political in a form that creates the experience of thinking and feeling, and the necessary connection between the public and the private.
However, this effort is disappointing. I'm half way through it, and regret to say that I probably won't finish it because the memoir dimension bores me, precisely the kind of self-centered writing which turns me off of "memoirs" and precisely the kind of tedious self disclosure that A CHORUS OF STONES managed to avoid or, at least successfully integrate into larger events. Here the personal swamps the reader and the links to the larger issues of contemporary history appear forced and even contrived, rather than be quite natural as in the previous work. Some of the early pages on Emerson and early environmentalism show flashes of the earlier brilliance, but this level of writing is not sustained.
Again, if you haven't read CHORUS, I highly recommend it. griffin is well aware of the risks of this sort of writing, as she mentioned during a reading I attended. But she needed an honest editor to tell her to give more head to her own caveats.
 Think for yourself, as Griffin says May 18, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have to agree that the Professor's review is specious - and mistaken. Griffin did indeed talk of just who "we, the people" were at this country's founding. She demonstrated her wit, intelligence, and deep knowledge of democracy. If you're curious about the radio interview in question, and Krazny the host is one of the best at his job, you can hear it at kqed.org/programs/radio/forum. It does serve as an engaging introduction to an important book.
An insightful analyst unfairly maligned May 16, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I would not normally presume to review a book I had not yet read; yet the preceding critic has the extraordinary presumption -- even more shocking for a man who identifies himself as an educator -- to both review and rate this book that he acknowledges "I have not read and do not intend to read." What a closed-minded attitude for someone who has taught at a university -- and how grossly unfair to rate a book one refuses to read! Does Amazon not have any guidelines on besmirching an author's reputation by ranking a book one won't read?
I too have not read this book (yet, in my case), but I have certainly read enough from Prof. Campbell to be alarmed at the level of intellectual curiosity and teaching at one branch of the California State University system. His comments violate everything I cherish about intellectual inquiry.
Although I have not yet read "Wrestling ...," I did hear a KQED interview with Ms. Griffin, presumably the one that Emeritus Prof. Campbell heard. I found Ms. Griffin's views to be honest, compelling and challenging. I can't wait to read her book, and I urge others to do the same. She invites reasoned inquiry; Emeritus Prof. Campbell forecloses it, sight unseen.
Peter Y. Sussman, journalist and author
 Wrestling with ....? May 14, 2008
2 out of 18 found this review helpful
i have not and do not intend to read this book
i heard the author interviewed on KQED, and found her to be naive and incredibly mis-informed
beginning with the title - Democracy is not an American form of government, Under the Constitution we are a Republic -- that was the Founder's intention, and until the Constitution is seriously amended -- very unlikely -- we will remain a Republic
Res Publica -- the public is represented; not people, not one person one vote.
The Founders abhored and feared democracy -- that is why they wrote it out of the Constitution.
The Founders were Anglo-European male property owners - they wrote the Constitution to protect and further their OWN interests
a few years later when they realized they needed more protection they came back and wrote the Bill of Rights -- which provided them further property guarantees and privileges
to say that a Corporation 'should not be a person,' is incredibly naive and ill-informed
Under the Supreme Courts interpretation of the 14th Amendment, a Corporation is a person .....
and so it goes
Gregg Campbell
Professor Emeritus
American Cultural History
CSU, Sacramento
A Compelling Read April 9, 2008
4 out of 7 found this review helpful
This is an important book - one you can sink your teeth in. What a funny way to describe such a book. It is at the same time erudite and personal. Griffin brings democracy to life, reminds us what it was intended to be, what it might yet become. This book is exciting - it stirs up dreams and visions and shines a light on what it means to be conscious and democratic in our world. I love this book.
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