Customer Reviews

Why History Matters: Life and Thought

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I used Lerner's book to conclude my graduate seminar in U.S. Women's History in part because it makes such a compelling case for why, in this postmodern moment, history does matter. Lerner does not pull punches; her memories of the holocaust and her return to Austria years later remind us of the burden of history. At the same time she makes a compelling case for a writing of history that is scholarly and rigerous yet personal and political. I use parts of her book in both graduate and undergraduate courses to articulate to students why history still matters and why we are not free from the burden of history. The book provokes fascinating discussion and, in the end, reminds many of us as to why we studied history in the first place. In the end it inspires as well as challenges.

I am quite astonished that no one has commented on the importance of Dr. Lerner's book. I propose that it be read in tandem with any other book that shows the treatment of women. Books ranging from "The Red Tent" by Anita Diamant,which takes place in the Biblical era all the way to Anna Quindlan's "Black and Blue," which relates to an abused wife today, begin to have even more signficance when one becomes familiar with Lerner's thesis: women have suffered from a patriarchal society since time began, and by understanding our history, we should begin to realize the power and influence that HALF the population of the world could wield. Lerner's book is surely academic, but it is worth reading. Imagine if ALL women really determined we should strive for peace, equality, freedom, etc. Lerner is a cautious optimist about the future, sensing that the women's movement does suggest a new paradigm for the future. I read Lerner's book two years ago and I find it relates to nearly every book I have read, fiction and non-fiction, since.

I cannot recommend Gerda Lerner's book highly enough. And it's very timely. People the world over are organizing around important issues and coming to realize that we must work TOGETHER to effect real change. Read Why History Matters to learn exactly why all oppressed peoples must work AS ONE to transform a patriarchal world that will, if left unchallenged, self destruct.

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This book is a powerful collection of essays by the intriguing Austrian-American historian Gerda Lerner. I plan to use some of these essays in my various college-level history and sociology courses.

There are several key themes in this book, including the importance of passive resistance in modern times, a movement she credits to American women,who in turn influenced Thoreau, Tolstoy, Gandhi and Martin Luther King; and a thoughtful look at both past and present American values.

To my mind, the most important, fascinating and significant part of this book is Lerner's recounting of her own experiences as a Jew in Hitler's Austria.

Through her description of her acculturation to American society, she has done something very important towards helping us understand both the tragedy of Nazism, universality of the immigrant experience, and the draw of America.

Through Lerner's eyes,we begin to understand the pain of never being able to really "go home" again, what it is like to live in a land where even your own children cannot pronounce your name properly, the invisible barriers between two sisters who no longer speak the same language, and the driving ambition that leads a brilliant scholar to acclimate to a new world.

Lerner's shock at visiting Germany fifty years after the Holocaust is gut-renching. She writes:

"I have read all there is to read about it; my memories and nightmares are unrelenting. I was among the lucky survivors; the list of my personal dead is not as long as that of others. I did not think that at my age there was anything I could learn about these events. What I discovered in Germany or this trip really should not have surprised me. Still it chokes off my breath and makes my head feel curiously empty and light. They have succeeded. Germany is judenrein. They have succeeded in annihilating my people. .. I knew it, of course. I've known it for fifty years, but I've never felt it before."

This boook belongs on the shelf next to "Constantine's Sword" and "In the Garden of the Beasts." "Why History Matters" is a truly important work.

Kim Burdick
Stanton, Delaware

I cannot recommend Gerda Lerner's book highly enough. And it's very timely. People the world over are organizing around important issues and coming to realize that we must work TOGETHER to effect real change. Read Why History Matters to learn exactly why all oppressed peoples must work AS ONE to transform a patriarchal world that will, if left unchallenged, self destruct.

I cannot recommend Gerda Lerner's book highly enough. And it's very timely. People the world over are organizing around important issues and coming to realize that we must work TOGETHER to effect real change. Read Why History Matters to learn exactly why all oppressed peoples must work AS ONE to transform a patriarchal world that will, if left unchallenged, self destruct.