Take a photo of a barcode or cover
lauren_endnotes 's review for:
Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right
by Arlie Russell Hochschild
Strangers in Their Own Land is a detailed look at the cultural divide in the US. The scope of this divide is deep (and wide), and Hochschild, a Berkeley sociologist, chooses to focus on a specific sector: the environment, corporate pollution, and regulatory practices. It's an interesting shift as so much rhetoric on the divide focuses on religion, race, and even healthcare. Those are mentioned here, but only as supporting the theme of environmental factors. She chooses to focus her studies on Louisiana, where corporate responsibility and regulations are very low, and pollution of land and waterways are very high, yet right-wing politics continue to thrive.
Bayous and riverways completely ruined with toxic waste, pets and livestock sickened and killed by pollution, higher risks of tumors and cancers in the human population, and sinkholes as big as football fields swallowing land, houses, and cars as a resulting of fracking...
Hochschild uses this metaphor of the "empathy wall" that she must climb over to view situations as her subjects do. As a reader, I found it difficult to climb this empathy wall with her. I was frustrated, and angered by this level of corporate irresponsibility, and the inaction (and even incentivization!) of the people and politicians. Hochschild constructs this larger "deep story" or myth of the right that she refers to a number of times in the book. This deep story in itself is quite compelling, and while it isn't MY myth, I can sympathize (rather than empathize?) with the plight. It's ruggedly individualistic, could be described as Randian in some cases, very "fend for yourself" (unless you look, talk, and worship like I do, then I'll help you... that is where I get tripped up on understanding...).
Needless to say, this is a challenging read, but one that I think truly gets to the heart of the political divide in the US. This same title could be used for a deep study on healthcare, race relations, etc. I appreciated that Hochschild focused on the environmental angle though, as it is one that is drastically underreported, and devastating on the personal and community level.
5/5
Bayous and riverways completely ruined with toxic waste, pets and livestock sickened and killed by pollution, higher risks of tumors and cancers in the human population, and sinkholes as big as football fields swallowing land, houses, and cars as a resulting of fracking...
"Pollution is the sacrifice we make for capitalism."
Hochschild uses this metaphor of the "empathy wall" that she must climb over to view situations as her subjects do. As a reader, I found it difficult to climb this empathy wall with her. I was frustrated, and angered by this level of corporate irresponsibility, and the inaction (and even incentivization!) of the people and politicians. Hochschild constructs this larger "deep story" or myth of the right that she refers to a number of times in the book. This deep story in itself is quite compelling, and while it isn't MY myth, I can sympathize (rather than empathize?) with the plight. It's ruggedly individualistic, could be described as Randian in some cases, very "fend for yourself" (unless you look, talk, and worship like I do, then I'll help you... that is where I get tripped up on understanding...).
Needless to say, this is a challenging read, but one that I think truly gets to the heart of the political divide in the US. This same title could be used for a deep study on healthcare, race relations, etc. I appreciated that Hochschild focused on the environmental angle though, as it is one that is drastically underreported, and devastating on the personal and community level.
5/5