Is America breaking apart?

Colin Walters

The America of Mr. Hall and Mr. Lindholm is a good place, but one that could be better. It is internally very strong but could, over its course of its 200 or so years have gone in other directions than it did. That thought is one of the more interesting ones the authors offer and is the basis of the first half of their book, in which they claim four historic turning points in the republic's history. -- Washington Times

George F. Will

Those facts are from a slender (154 pages) new book, Is America Breaking Apart? by John A. Hall of McGill University and Charles Lindholm of Boston University. Their book is a timely appreciation of "the cohesive power of the American experiment." In spite of "endless talk of difference," American society is an amazing machine for homogenizing people. There is "the democratizing uniformity of dress and discourse, and the casualness and absence of deference" characteristic of popular culture. People are absorbed into "a culture of consumption" launched by the 19th-century department stores that offered "vast arrays of goods in a palatial atmosphere. Instead of intimate shops catering to a knowledgeable elite" these were stores "anyone could enter, regardless of class or background. This turned shopping into a communal and democratic act." The mass media, advertising and mass spectator sports are other forces for homogenization.
— Newsweek

Library Journal

Unlike many other countries, America as a republic has been free of outside intervention in charting its future. From the early Colonists shared English backgrounds through the continuing assimilation of immigrant cultures, social conflict and political protest have created a society that asserts the equality (and individuality) of all. The federal government is likely to be maintained and political citizenship widely realized; the country (in general) has enjoyed economic growth and can see no real threats to its leadership position in the capitalist world. Hall (sociology, McGill Univ.) and Lindholm (anthropology, Boston Univ.) present a reasoned polemic, arguing that the United States, while not without self-doubt, the stain of racism, and other internal conflicts and disparities, has emerged as the worlds most powerful and stable society, not likely to break apart soon. Readable and highly recommended for academics and the general public.Suzanne W. Wood, SUNY Coll. of Technology, Alfred

Booknews

Hall (sociology, McGill U.) and Lindholm (anthropology, Boston U.) explore the institutional structures of American society, emphasizing the society's ability to accommodate difference and defuse conflict. Scrutinizing how Americans place faith in the individual but demand high moral commitment to the community, they argue that American society is actually a product of a shared cultural belief in human distinctiveness and equality, a shared belief that seems to exaggerate worries about disunity. Combining history, sociology, and anthropology, they cover a wide range of past and recent challenges and recognize the strength and promise of American society despite the internal contradictions and moral tensions. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknew.com)

The Economist

In this essentially optimistic book, only one sour note is sounded. America holds together much better than one would expect, except that blacks are not yet properly included. The spectre of "two nations" now pits the desperate anomie of the black ghettoes against the rest of the country, black and white.

Kirkus Reviews

Amid the clamor of multiculturalism and "difference" politics, Americans wonder if their country can remain a cohesive whole. Hall (Sociology/McGill Univ., Canada) and Lindholm (Anthropology/Boston Univ.) argue that our concerns are unfounded and not all that new; for better, and sometimes for worse, we will survive. American unity derives from both historically conditioned institutional patterns and shared cultural values. Historically, oppositional forces coalesced within a flexible and stable two-party system quite early on and citizenship rights steadily if selectively expanded. At the same time, threatening social alternatives—be they the antebellum South or late 19th-century socialist radicalism—were, often quite violently, eliminated. What emerged from all this was a society of core homogeneity, but a homogeneity of a peculiar sort. In the authors' words, we have achieved "homogenization by the extension of the American values of individual choice." While we may all think alike, we think in terms of individual autonomy, uniqueness, and justice. This does make of us the atomized herd described by so many observers of America. We do value community quite strongly, but only as the voluntary cooperation of equals. Therein lies the rub, for free individuals can always withdraw support from a community. And so we worry. Yet, on the other hand, the tolerant and pragmatic nature of American cultural values, the willingness to forego deep-seated ideological beliefs that demand conformity, paradoxically keeps us together. Much of what the authors say is not that unique, but it is their ambivalence that intrigues. Certainly, a stable society is to be preferred to one constantly inturmoil, but at what price stability? Was not the labor struggle of the late 19th century a legitimate social alternative? Does not a culture of equality mask enormous economic as well asp racial inequalities of the US? Still, the authors find hope in the enduring tensions between American ideals and reality. A slim but very thoughtful volume that is well worth reading.

Philadelphia Inquirer

A brisk, unusually lively tour through American history and habits. . . . Is America Breaking Apart? usefully urges us to probe for Balkanizing impulses in our own souls, then pronounces us healthy.
— Carlin Romano

Philadelphia Inquirer - Carlin Romano

A brisk, unusually lively tour through American history and habits. . . . Is America Breaking Apart? usefully urges us to probe for Balkanizing impulses in our own souls, then pronounces us healthy.

The Washington Times - Colin Walters

Mr. Hall's and Mr. Lindholm's overall intention is to show how the United States has held together since the Founding, why it shows every promise of continuing to do so, and what are the positive and negative aspects of that history and present state of affairs. . . . [A] short, stimulating book.

Christian Century - Rhys H. Williams

Insightful and persuasive. . . . The authors manage the difficult task of being both brief and nuanced.

Choice

Briefly but brilliantly Hall and Lindholm marshal sociology and history to assert that there has never been a time in American history without hostilities and rifts. . . . The prose is at once judicious and elegant. Appealing both to intellect and imagination, this work unites a clear vision of American past with expectations of future achievement. It deserves the widest possible audience.

Christian Century

Insightful and persuasive. . . . The authors manage the difficult task of being both brief and nuanced.
— Rhys H. Williams

Washington Times

Mr. Hall's and Mr. Lindholm's overall intention is to show how the United States has held together since the Founding, why it shows every promise of continuing to do so, and what are the positive and negative aspects of that history and present state of affairs. . . . [A] short, stimulating book.
— Colin Walters

The Economist Review

As [the authors] point out, in a book that is both soothing and convincing . . . the nation, at least as a community of interacting individuals, is strong and safe.

The Washington Times

[A] short, stimulating book. . . . Mr. Hall's and Mr. Lindholm's overall intention is to show how the United States has held together since the Founding, why it shows every promise of continuing to do so, and what are the positive and negative aspects of that history and present state of affairs.
— Colin Walters