Most Helpful Customer Reviews
67 of 69 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Quite a Read! An Important Minority Report on the History of the U.S., August 13, 2005
No historian of the United States is more provocative than Howard Zinn, whose leftist philosophy permeates his writings and never fails to challenge his readers. "The Twentieth Century: A People's History" is every bit as ambitious as his other works; it is drawn from the latter part of his "A People's History of the United States" with additional chapters to bring the chronicle to the end of the century. Like the majority of other works by Zinn, this one is a must read for anyone seeking to ensure the broadest possible perspective on the American past. What is presented here will be disturbing to many and perhaps angering to some, but as always he presents his analysis with a style and verve that is rigorous and often compelling. If you are not up to being challenged read something else that presents a more consensus perspective on the past, such as Stephen Ambrose or David McCullough. But if you are willing to consider that there might be more to the story of the twentieth century than you learned in school and from consensus historians, then ponder the ideas in this book.
Zinn believes, and states throughout this work, that the dominant narrative of American history focusing "on the Founding Fathers and the Presidents weigh oppressively on the capacity of the ordinary citizen to act. They suggest that in times of crisis we must look to someone to save us: in the Revolutionary crisis, the Founding Fathers; in the slavery crisis, Lincoln; in the Depression, Roosevelt; in the Vietnam-Watergate crisis, Carter. And that between occasional crises everything is all right...The idea of saviors has been built into the entire culture, beyond politics. We have learned to look to stars, leaders, experts in every field, thus surrendering our own strength, demeaning our own ability, obliterating our own selves" (pp. 413-14).
Zinn abhors this aspect of our culture, and seeks to tell the story of those who bucked it throughout the twentieth century. He argues that the power elite in America have created a system of control in which most people do not even realize they are being controlled. "With a country so rich in natural resources, talent, and labor power the system can afford to distribute just enough wealth to just enough people to limit discontent to a troublesome minority" (p. 414), he writes. Zinn notes that one percent of the nation owns one third of the wealth, and that the elite dole out just enough to placate the rest, all the while pitting them against each other. He adds, "These groups have resented each other and warred against each other with such vehemence and violence as to obscure their common position as sharers of leftovers, in a very wealthy country" (p. 414). This book is really about those who battled that system, and he celebrates Eugene Debs, Daniel and Philip Berrigan, Angela Davis, Martin Luther King, Bill Haywood, and thousands of others who challenged the status quo.
No question, Zinn views the history of the twentieth century--as well as earlier--in the U.S. as a struggle between the haves and the have nots. The haves, he comments, have been enormously successful in securing their hegemony against far greater numbers in no small part because of "all-embracing symbols, physical and verbal: the flag, patriotism, democracy, national interest, national defense, national security" (p. 415). Appeals to these themes, he believes, have been effectively used to blunt the criticism of the system that otherwise might bring it tumbling down. Thus, George W. Bush has appealed to flag-waving patriotism to unite a divided country and maintain control rather than deal with the underlying reasons for terrorism, "deep grievances against the United States" (p. 474).
"The Twentieth Century: A People's History" is a powerful book with ideas revolutionary in character. If you don't want to consider them then don't read it. Zinn certainly makes no apologies for his position. His is a distinctly minority voice in a discussion of the century just past, but an important and eloquent one. One that we all might learn something from.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
119 of 132 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
US History Not-Lite, July 8, 2003
I often use this book in one of my university history classes, "US History Since 1877." It's biased. All history writing it biased. (George W. Bush's problems with "revisonist history" aside.) I tell the students about Howard Zinn and his biases. And I tell them to try and be as upfront and aware of biases as they are of Zinn's, and as Zinn is of his own. People are bombarded with so much yahoo, rah-rah, raise-the-flag, my-coumntry-right-or-wrong (the next part of that toast is usually---and very conveniently---ignored; check it out some time) that Zinn is as refreshing as a tequila mojito on a hot summer day. He may rant, but unlike many on the other sides he can be checked out for veracity and found to be correct. You have to be when you're taking shots from folks who prefer using cant, rhetoric and arrant nonsense to propel their own agendas. Highly recommended. But, if you use this book in a class, watch out; the Thought Police are watching.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
40 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Zinn Humanizes History with another Viewpoint, December 5, 1998
This review is from: The Twentieth Century: A People's History (Paperback)
The reader from Rhode Island entirely misses the point of Zinn's books. Zinn has attempted something that doesn't exist in traditional history books (especially those provided in American primary and secondary schools); he examines our history by looking at what ordinary people thought, experienced, and did instead of writing it as if there is only a single point of view as is represented in many American history books. Zinn is an admitted liberal (and because of his obvious bias I give 4 instead of 5 stars to this book). The reader from Rhode Island is incensed that Zinn's book is biased because s/he obviously doesn't share Zinn's biases. Doesn't Rhode Island realize that all human beings have biases (some of which Rhode Island probably agrees with)? Therefore, to one extent or another, all history books are biased. At least Zinn admits to his biases! Becuase Zinn has much greater sympathy for Native Americans than for European immigrants; for poor than for wealthy citizens; and for the powerless than for those with power doesn't mean that he hasn't conducted research (from original sources of the day) to provide information regarding events in our history. If his research results in discovering facts that show past actions of some Americans is less than laudatory, this doesn't negate the truth or accuracy of the research. Many American history books (as well as those from other countries) are written to promote a general love of country while trying to inculcate, in young students, the idea that their country is right and never wrong. While this may make young citizens loyal to the USA, it does not encourage them to think critically, to admit that some choices made by Americans are not admirable, and most importantly, does not represent the point of view of many American citizens. Reading Zinn for the first time was like a breath of fresh air for me. When I was in college and later, I became very interested in and started to read, more extensively, books on American history and politics. I learned that what I thought I knew was, for the most part, a highly censored and untruthful version of our history. Though this made me angry, I still believed that our country was great because the ideals and principals we espoused were something that we constantly were striving towards. Zinn brought the richness, the variety, and the multi-culturism of America to me in a way that was vivid and exciting! It amazes me that many people recoil from unpleasant information about our past as if Americans are so weak, they will crumble if they hear anything negative about our country. In our country, American citizens are the most multicultural in the world; our citizens hold different viewpoints and beliefs on religion, customs, politics, and mores. And most Americans are incredibly tolerant of the right of other Americans to practice different beliefs than their own. This is the basis of our strength at a nation. Therefore, the truth (pleasant or otherwise) regarding our past (and present actions), can only make us better informed, more questioning of what is right or wrong, and more likely to insist that we achieve a better and more equitable Democracy for all. There are enough history books that extoll the virtues of American history and are, at the worst, blatant lies about America's past actions, and at best, omit any information that might make America look less than perfect. It is a pleasure to know that other history books exist that provide a more accurate version of what actually happened in our past. So I say to any reader, who genuinely wants to find out about American history, and to see it from a more vital and humane viewpoint, buy and read Zinn books. You will not be disappointed!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
