Customer Reviews

Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Elijah Anderson has done an outstanding job of explaining the sociological, economic, and geographical factors that contribute to the mentality commonly seen among young men in the inner city and the violence that can emerge as a result.
As a young black man that grew up in a two parent home in suburban Maryland, I was extremely confused when I left my small town for middle school. It was there that I was first exposed to black children with less fortunate financial backgrounds, single parent homes, and low value of education and order. As Anderson explains, even in the suburban regions of Maryland adjacent to D.C. inner city attitudes, styles, trends, and even volatility can be seen in young blacks as a result of 'cultural diffusion'. A phenomenon which has a peculiar property of moving up the socioeconomic ladder in the black community.
What I appreciate about Mr. Anderson's book most is that it has finally helped me to answer the question of 'WHY', which has tormented me for almost 15 years. Why have I found myself to be different than many of my black peers as a young man and an adult when all I wanted was a good education, a good job, and to live a decent life. EVERY person, Black or White who has found themself glaring at the low socioeconomic black community and wondering what is wrong, or quoting Bill Cosby Rhetoric while watching a group of hoodlums bully any and everyone off of the sidewalk, or turning up your nose at a pregnant 19 year old girl yelling at her toddler as she mopes down the sidewalk... YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK. Understanding is the beginning of dealing with what has become everyone's problem.

Code of the Street corrects the myth, held by many, that the inner city underclass does not want to work. The book has helped me to discuss with my two foster girls, the difference between decent and street people how to recognize the game. I read passages to them and we discuss, in depth, the issue. I urge all parents, especially foster parents, to read this book. I had repeatedly observed the Code but like a jigsaw puzzle, not understanding how it all connected. Thanks to Mr. Anderson, he enabled me to see the picture entirely as it exists.

Elijah Anderson's Code of the Street is, as one would expect from an observer with Professor Anderswon's track record, extremely valuable in demystifying and humanizing the behavior of both the good and the bad of the people who live in the nation's black ghettos. With his usual keen eye and ear, and his interest in human behavior, and his good humor, Anderson puts us right on the streets of Philadelphia (and every other urban area), walking among the well-to-do and the striving and the desperate as we track Germantown Avenue from the environs of comfort and affluence back to the inner city. The book's value in explaining the behavior of those at the bottom of the society, whether that behavior is good or bad, as the normal reaction of human beings when faced with an extreme situation can't be over-praised. His description of the code of the street also rang bells for me that all of us, including those that live and work in far more rarefied environs, also operate by codes of behavior that, in both their good and bad manifestations, are fundamentally no different than the ones identified here. They, usually, are just expressed in a more genteel fashion.

Code of the Street, by Elijah Anderson, was an extremely well-written book and very detailed. I often found myself saying, "yup, that's right!" I have lived and went to school in the suburbs, and now I live in the innercity. My experiences between the suburbs and in the innercity are TOTALLY different. Anderson just simply summarized everything about my innercity, even though it was focused just on Germantown. He even explained the types of people I know (even though they are found in all social and economic classes). The type that are "street" people. The "decent" people. Then there are those who are inbetween, like me, the type the "code switch," that can be either "decent" or "street" depending on the situation. He greatly explained the situations and concerns of the innercity people.

I had the pleasure meeting Elijah Anderson, and he is a completely a very nice person and keeps things "real." He is not some type of "wanna be" researcher who is trying to write a book about the innercity people, and don't have a clue about how people in the innercity lives. He has experience of living in the innercity, and he wrote this book (along with others) to help explain to others how the situation is in the innercity. I totally support his work.

This book in my opinion should be required text for any sociology class dealing with the issues of class, race, cities and violence. I found this book while i was searching for books to write my undergraduate thesis. This book paired with a book by Carl Upchurch was the main focus and content of my thesis. i am currentlly using this book for my masters thesis. This book describes life in Philly but once you get into it, it could be any mid-sized city in America. It highlights the struggles that todays youth go through on a daily basis to be either "decent" or "street" and unfortunatly at times the line between the two isn't clear and everyone is lumped as "street". Hands down one of the best books i've read on the subject.

I came away from this book with quite a bit.
One of the most important things is the difference between street and decent. It is difficult to figure out who is who. Its supposed to be that way. Its about survival.
Anderson breaks stereotypes. He gives a thorough description of the oppositional culture. He discusses sex and children without full responsibility as proof of manhood. He also includes what girls are trying to gain as well. He points out that by the time that children enter fourth grade they already know that respect in the education system is very different from that on the streets. Its encredibly difficult for children and it shouldn't be this hard.
I think that in order to solve a problem you need to know what the problem is. He lays this out very well. I liked it so much that I have started to read Streetwise.

I am so impressed with this book I can't believe it. Every page provided a new insight. As a white person I gained a whole new perspective on...well, everything, it seems like. Mr. Anderson does such a great job of giving an "inside look" into the inner city world, you really come away understanding a whole lot more.

I appreciated that Anderson laid the facts out without playing the blame game. His writing is objective but also compassionate; you can really see *individuals,* not just "black people." I closed the book thinking, "Well, I can't change everything, but with this knowledge I can sure make changes in myself, and at least that's a start." It takes a great book to provide that kind of power and inspiration. Just for that alone, I think every white person should read this book.

So, Bravo, Mr. Anderson! Please continue to write on the subject!

This book should be on the required reading list for any practitioner in the system, especially those who work in the fields of criminal justice and social services.
In this very real, very hard hitting account of what happens to generations of people who feel disconnected from the dominant society in which they live, we are given a view of what motivates some of them to continue their lifestyles.
Dr.Anderson's account of the code of the street, does not only include teens, but also, everyone in the community.
I found the concept of "code switching", as well as his personal interviews with both teens and adults, fascinating.
I especially enjoyed his accounts of the day to day lives of several individuals and how they handled their ever growing problems.
All in all, I found the book hard to put down, once I began to read it.
I found that throughout the entire book, Dr. Anderson was always aware that there are no simple answers to the big questions. However, in spite of how dire the situation appears in the inner cities, he does offer some suggestions and hope.

If I had to choose one word in regards to "Code of the Street" it would (without a doubt) be "insightful." Elijah Anderson did a particularly good job of introducing "characters" found in the inner city. Though his philosophy focuses primarily on those people from Germantown (in philadelphia), they can be recognized in any American inner city. Coming from the suburbs of an inner city, the book was particularly eye-opening, allowing me to understand further the class structure of the city. The detailed descriptions of "decent," "street," and "code-switching" cultures were extremely valuable. I also enjoyed reading further about the prominence of "black inner-city grandmothers" and their role in the family. Knowing a close family friend in such similar circumstances as described in the book made this even more interesting to read about. Also, because drug abuse has become such a prominent issue in America during recent years, my other favorite section of the book regarded the underground economy of drug dealers.

Another very wonderful thing about this book are the intimate personal stories placed throughout the book. Elijah Anderson did a very good job of interviewing people from the streets, and finding those in similar situations to those presented in his book. These stories made the book all the more understandable and real.

If there was one problem I could pinpoint, it would definitely be redundance in Elijah Anderson's writing. The information provided was extremely descriptive, sometimes becoming repetitive or drawn out in several cases. This, however, did not by any means overshadow the quality of the insight.

This book should be mandatory reading for anyone working in urban areas. Actually it should be on everyone's "must read list." The insights are remarkably enlightening. Even thought the book was written by a college professor and is academic in nature it is a terrific read.