Worst liberal/left wing book that you forced to read in High School or College?

My Squash ^ | 10/31/02 | Burkeman1

[Burkeman1]

Everyone has their horror story about some PC or Left Wing book they were forced to read in High School or College. My worst book was in High School. It was "The Fixer" by Bernard Malamud. It was the tale of a Russian Jew being falsley accused of the rape and murder of a Christian Russian girl just before the Communist coup of Russia. He was innocent of the crime and the book details his time in prison and the torments he was subjucted too. OF Course during his time in prison he becomes a Marxist and hopes for revolution! The entire book was one giant communist propaganda piece. Since I had already read Solzenitsyn by that time and questioned the book in class I was told to shut up by the teacher. I did- to my shame- and got my "A".

What is the worst piece of Left wing crap that you were forced to read in school?

[FreedomPoster]

>>Physics I & II - Resnick and Halliday

I agree - excellent Physics text. That's the Real Deal for undergrad physics for engineers and scientists.

[DaughterofEve]

What memories! I'd forgotten about The Jungle...ughh!
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man was among my most hated as well.
Also despised what I read of Chaucer but that was in college.

[jackbill]

I am sad to say that I got through most of High School and almost all of college without reading an assigned book. Sad because I waited years before reading some of the classics (Twain, Melville, etc.) Too boring for a 15 year old kid.

On the other hand, I always had a book, usually history or current events sitting on my nightstand. Still do. It is never too late to start!

During my engineering school experience, I had to take a number of electives. One that I chose was Russian Literature. If you've picked up a Russian novel, you know that it's a bit ponderous, especially for someone working at least 40 hours a week and going to night school.

I found that by reading the first page or two and the last page or two of each chapter, I made it through the course with an A. Many of the "liberal arts" students fought it, and failed.

Now that I am in the early stages of my dotage, I am finally able to enjoy Gogol, Dostoyevski, Chekhov, Pushkin, et al.

[AnAmericanMother]

Dreadful story.

Problem was, once Faulkner got famous the temptation to publish the contents of his wastepaper basket was just too great. And IIRC he was occasionally not entirely sober.

Still, he wrote some good stuff, you just have to pick and choose. I read "As I Lay Dying" in high school - scary, gross in spots, very effective. I like "The Bear" (taken from Go Down, Moses and "Spotted Horses" - taken from The Hamlet and of course Absalom, Absalom!

[AnAmericanMother]

Please, give Mr. Chaucer another chance!

Get the Eckers translation if you want an accurate mirror of the Middle English. I have an older translation in "modern English prose" that is very readable and enjoyable, by R.M. Lumiansky. Or, just for fun, Geraldine McCaughean's adaptation for young readers (she manages to finesse the "Miller's Tale" neatly, but her "Death's Murderers" stands all on its own merits) illustrated superbly by one of my favorite British illustrators, Victor Ambrus. Ambrus's portrait of Chaucer is alone worth the price of admission, but his knights are knightly, his honest yeoman are stout and true, his ladies are lovely (although occasionally silly) and his Pardoner is absolutely slimey. Great artist.

[reg45]

When I studied college physics almost forty years ago we used Halliday & Resnick as a text. When did they switch the authors' names?

[reg45]

The best thing about majoring in tech (Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics or Engineering) is that you can avoid a lot of that literary crap. Of course you have to suffer through Differential Equations, Quantum Mechanics, Thermodynamics and all those other brain buster courses. But you know, It's worth it!.

[nopardons]

Orwell openly repudiated his past Socialism and wrote " 1984 " and " ANIMAL FARM ", for the distinct reason of warning evryone, especially those who still clung to Marxist / Socialist views , how dreadfully wrong those positions were. He was also very vocal publicly, and denounced his previous works and positions.

Huxley, OTOH, never did anything at all even close to that. His " BRAVE NEW WORLD REVISITED ", is a polemic on how surprised he was that somethings in BNW were coming true in 1958. They weren't, and as usual, Aldous saw himself as more than he was. Much of this book sounds like a FR Libertarian wrote it ... including all of the Jeffersonian cherrypicked and misused quotes. As a matter of fact, this ultra slim book is made up of more quotes, of others, than actual thoughts of Huxlely's. What you have chosen to quote, of his, is out of context and doesn't fit the whole. You have taken it all out of time, hence it seems more relivant, than it truly was / is , to the scheme of things.

Yes, he is against " big business " ; that was the tacit LIBERAL vent of the day, back then. He also was scared to death of over population ( this stems from his Fabian days, as well as the Liberal hysteria, that was beginning to bubble over )and the fact that " undesireables " were living into adulthood and that there were far too many of them in America. This had nothing whatsoever to do with immigration or illegal aliens. As to " big government ", Ike was president, and this polemic was anti-Republican ; not just a complaint against " big government ". Taking things out of their time context, will make things appear to be that which they weren't. Try reading " HUXLEY IN HOLLYWOOD ", for a better understanding of Aldous and his positions. Then, you should try redaing a few of the massive amount of books about and by the Bloomsbury crowd.

I think that you don't know enough, to make any kind of rational critique on what Huxley was saying and what my posts contain.

[XBob]

to ally your fears a bit, I spent a lot of time in the far east, and the women are tiny, few reaching the size of your wife. However, the size of the babies at birth is generally the same as with western babies.

Female bodies are a lot more 'flexible' than we men would normally think.

[BradyLS]

So you're saying these were written in the 1800's? Where do you find them? I'll have to check those out.

[BradyLS]

Death of a Salesman has liberal themes, but they're indirect and it can be viewed as a tragic portrayal of a man who stays the same as the world changes around him. It's still one of the best actors' plays of the 20th century -- Dustin Hoffman's best film performance.

Have you seen the one with DeForest Kelley? ;-)

[FreedomPoster]

And today, you also avoid all the socialist indoctrination BS that goes with it.

And you're right, it is Halliday & Resnick - I had just cut'n'pasted harbingr's text.

[ventana]

I know enough to say that your post contained misspellings and a comma splice! V's wife.

[ventana]

As to the writer, specifically: the exact nature and character, as well as personal beliefs, of an author have always been discussed and debated regarding the relevance of these particulars to the work of art itself. This applies to Chaucer;Shakespeare; Dickens; Shaw;James;Hawthorne;Fitzgerald, etc. Art eclipses the particulars of time and place and an author's conceits and embrace eternal themes, while still revealing aspects of the epoch wherein it was written. But you already knew that, I'm sure. V's wife.

[ventana]

Regarding Faulkner, the Sound and the Fury is very good. V's wife.

[AnAmericanMother]

Absolutely. I was just posting off the top of my head, wasn't trying to make an exclusive list.

[ventana]

Oh, I think your list and your observations are great! Thanks. V's wife.

[AnAmericanMother]

Captain Marryat's books have been reissued recently in the Classics of Nautical Fiction series - you can pick them up at Amazon.

I enjoy holding a book in my hands more than reading on line, but if you want to take a peek at the amusing and edifying "Mr. Midshipman Easy" online, here it is:

Mr. Midshipman Easy

I had forgotten til I picked this up that the first chapter is headed: "Chapter 1 - Which the Reader Will Find Very Easy to Read." It is. I love the response of the prospective wet-nurse when taxed with her illegitimate child: "Please, ma'am, it was a very little one." (g)

[WhiteGuy]

Wasn't Me