Customer Reviews

Worlds Of Pain

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Lilian Rubin writes with an empathy that could only come from being the product of a working-class family herself. Unfortunately, the baggage which Rubin's brings along on her study tends to butt in inappropriately. In the chapter on the subject's childhood, for example, Rubin concludes that all of the subjects must have been unhappy during their early years because she could recall her "own impoverished background." It did not matter to Rubin that her subjects "implored, even commanded [her], to believe they had happy home lives as children."

It should also be noted that this study was conducted in 1972. While there is a fairly significant new introduction which Rubin wrote in 1992, the text of the book is unchanged. Certainly much has changed in the past twenty years. Both in terms of the jobs of the working-class, the sex lives of working-class couples, the reasons they marry, and even the definition of working-class itself.

In short, an interesting read by a talented writer. But rigorous sociology it is not.

This book would probably be a lot of use to a writer or screenwriter who was researching the working-class family in the early 70s. The stories are interesting and the writing is fluid and compelling. It gives a good slice of life from several perspectives.

It *might* be of interest to a historian as anecdotal material, but it's good to note that this is a small sample of interviews carried out by a writer who obviously had her own agenda with the subject matter.

I bought it second-hand and don't regret the time to read it.

An easy book to read about a very uncomfortable subject. As the title implies this is a book about the pain of unfulfilled dreams and the hurt that often follows. A devastating often unrelentingly bleak tome. I can't say you will enjoy it but I can say you will almost assuredly learn from it.
Diana Mercer is the co-author of Your Divorce Advisor and her company is peace-talks.com

Though not perfect, Rubin's work sheds light on many of the inter-personal and inter-gender plaues on America's working class families. Most importantly, Rubin writes with a believable sensitivity that heightens the text's effictiveness.

As interesting as this book was, Rubin failed to distance herself and her own biases from the writing. If one reads between the lines, what we get here is an author who has alterior motives. I'd like to know what her positions are on Socialism, Marxism, and Communism. She tries to be cryptic but the careful reader will discover what Rubin's really up to.

Finally, this book is dated. It has lost most of its validity, and unless one wants this book soley to understand the time it was done, it has very little place in current working-class family evaluation.