The historian and sociologist James William Gibson examines one of the legacies of America's defeat in Vietnam: a disturbing and reactionary consumer war culture at home. Notes, index.
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"One of the most important books on the American culture of violence that emerged from the twin crises of defeat in Vietnam and of feminists' and minorities' challenge to the status quo. In this brilliant, wide-ranging work, Gibson shows how this new 'cult of the warrior' has affected life at every level, from the offices of the federal government to the mean streets of our cities." -- Richard Slotkin, Wesleyan University
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Only part of the story.,
By
This review is from: Warrior Dreams: Violence and Manhood in Post-Vietnam America (Paperback)
Gibson takes easy shots at well worn targets in this book. The loss of male identity is better covered (and with more compassion) in Susan Faludi's Stiffed. He focuses his lens on the legions of Soldier of Fortune and Mack Bolan reading, inadequate, wanna-be warrior that fill our domestic violence shelters with their victims and our prisons with their bodies. These men are worthy of study, and frankly, in need of help. But this are the only example of modern masculine identity and "warrior-ship" that Gibson touches on.
This book lacks balance. Many of his points on the loss of male identity and the dark side of warrior culture are well made and accurate. However, he never acknowledges the fact that there are professional warriors out there who roll their eyes at Soldier of Fortune and don't jerk off to Sylvester Stallone movies. These would be the guys who would show up to get Gibson's ass out of a jam if he ever dials 911. They aren't perfect but they are necessary. Gibson recounts several conversations with marginal men, but I can't recall a single conversation with a "new warrior" who is a stable, quiet professional who functions in normal society and happens to be a solider, police officer, or similar. Indeed, if we listened only to Gibson, we would believe they don't exist. This book would have benefited from mentioning the men out there who are doing work examining what is healthy and generative about the male warrior ethos. He gives a brief, dismissive mention to the whole Robert Bly, banging drums in the wilderness crowd, but there's much more to it than that. There are thousands of men out there who are taking a hard look at what it means to be a man these days. Apparently Gibson didn't talk to any of them either. During his recounting of his trip to Gunsite shooting school, Gibson himself wallows in the uninitiated male's fascination with war. His masturbatory, guilty pleasure is almost embarrassing to read. One has to think maybe Gibson has some work to do in becoming comfortable with his own identity. Gibson does present a more rational discussion about gun control than you will ever get from either HCI or the NRA. While he lingers on the power and destructiveness of "assault weapons" in loving, almost pornographic detail, he also acknowledges the fact that ordinary citizens lawfully use firearms to defend themselves thousands of times a year. This is a fact that likely to get him excoriated in certain circles. It's a shame that balance doesn't extend to the rest of the book. I do have a certain respect for the fact that Gibson has obviously waded through hundreds of hours of bad action movies and thousands of pages of crap magazines and men's adventure books. Gibson does a good job of exposing a subculture that will doubtless be a revelation to readers who are at least middle class and educated. Discussions of class are noticeably absent. It's doubtful that many Soldier Of Fortune subscribers or Mack Bolan aficionados teach or attend at Gibson's home at California State University. These pleasures are reserved for the legions of lower class hillbillies and inner city kids that we use to fill the ranks of our armed forces, and often police departments. Class is a key piece of the puzzle, but Gibson doesn't mention it. While there's undoubtedly some connection between sex and violence in the particular pathologies Gibson is looking at, sometimes he reaches a little far. His claims that a mushroomed hollow point bullet looks just like a penis, inside the "vagina" of the wound channel in a block of ballistic test gelatin got a out loud laugh from me. I happen to be in possession of a penis and some expanded bullets, and I'm just not seeing the similarity. Sometimes a ballistic test is just a ballistic test. Gibson missed a chance to write a balanced, thoughtful look at what it means to be a man these days. Instead he engages in hand-wringing of the "let's talk about how boys are bad" variety, which is bound to get him recognition in certain circles, but does nothing towards helping invent the new men, and the new warriors, that our society desperately needs.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Disturbing is right!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Warrior Dreams: Violence and Manhood in Post-Vietnam America (Paperback)
This book was recommended to me in a politics chat room. When my friend described its topic with "paintball" "guns" "war movies" and "politics", I knew I had to read it (i had an interest in all of these things).The book starts off describing how "New Warriors" (men with a "warrior" mentality in Post-Vietnam America) see and treat women/children/family, how they are effected by consumer culture of war/paramiltary books and movies, view guns.. paintball. Presidents Nixon, Reagan, and Bush, along with Ollie North, Rambo, Charles Bronson, Chuck Norris all embrace or help create the New War. Mass murderers, assassins, and mercenaries are influenced by it as well. I'd like to see Gibson tackle the topic again. 5 years later, we've got an enormous computer/video game warrior culture, where hundreds of thousands of young men spend hours each day blasting each other to bits on the Internet.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An intriguing study of a spooky subculture,
By A Customer
This review is from: Warrior Dreams: Violence and Manhood in Post-Vietnam America (Paperback)
This book is a natural page-turner which delves into the rise of a new "warrior cult" in the U.S. beginning in the mid-70's and gaining momentum in the 80's. Explores the (sometimes dangerous) sociological implications of this fascination with automatic weapons, camouflage clothing, violence, and the "lone warrior", although the author's reliance on Jungian and Freudian interpretations of this phenomenon goes a bit overboard at times. Nonetheless this is a valuable study overall. The assertion that this phenomenon is fulfilling a valid psychological need in its adherents, and suggestions of alternate ways of fulfilling these needs that do not glorify violence, should prove to be provocative and hopefully useful in working toward a less violent society.
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