The author began writing this essay the day after waves of euphoria swept over what appeared to be a profoundly altered public space. Americans had seen the most diverse gathering of people coming freely together to affirm a common purpose no one could quite yet define. No one had instructed them to come out in the cold of that inauguration…

A discussion in reaction to Bell's thesis (AA 511 929) of the reflection of, and influence on, culture in art. The author focuses on literature and argues that the function of literature is to provide multiple perspectives and to influence the reader, and that this it to the good. (Author/JB)

Asserting that the revisionist historians of today avoid acknowledging the elements that make our condition tragic and our future forever unclear, the author proposes an approach without reliance on scapegoats, determinisms,--without hope of a final resolution of the tension between the individual and civilization. (JM)

Women who are able to acknowledge their distinctive perceptions and to relate them to their lives are the ones most likely to expose the oppressiveness of a power-driven society. Nathaniel Hawthorne's fictional character, Hester Prynne ("The Scarlet Letter") illustrates a crucial theme: a woman's faculty for critical awareness and her ability to…

Individuals, to realize democracy, must try to establish their own dominion and supremacy by rejecting the rule of the mechanical and the impersonal in today's technological society. (MB)

The essays in this book are the author's attempt to connect her own seeking with the strivings of other teachers and teacher educators who are tired of a self-centered, technocratic existence and who want to enhance their understanding of diversity. The essays concentrate on imagination as a means through which to assemble a coherent world,…

A survey of the concept of equality in American thought and literature reveals varying attitudes about socioeconomic opportunities and the function of education. In 1848, de Tocqueville foresaw that industrialization would create a manufacturing aristocracy which would be a threat to the equality demonstrated in agrarian America. During the…

Argues that spaces must be opened for ethical action to take place. Contends that humans must attempt to overcome carelessness that stands in the way of morality. Places ethical commitments within the context of community. Suggests ethical demands should be responded to by addressing persons, not aggregates. Urges imagining possibilities and…

The commitment of educators to human development goals is a major theme of the booklet's 17 essays. Compiled from lectures written by the author during 1974-77, the essays explore individual potential, the cultural significance of various life situations, and personal fulfillment within each individual's particular landscape of work, experience,…