The abolition movement is perhaps the most salient example of the struggle the United States has faced in its long and complex confrontation with the issue of race. In his final book; historian Paul Goodman; who died in 1995; presents a new and important interpretation of abolitionism. Goodman pays particular attention to the role that blacks played in the movement. In the half-century following the American Revolution; a sizable free black population emerged; the result of state-sponsored emancipation in the North and individual manumission in the slave states. At the same time; a white movement took shape; in the form of the American Colonization Society; that proposed to solve the slavery question by sending the emancipated blacks to Africa and making Liberia an American "colony." The resistance of northern free blacks was instrumental in exposing the racist ideology underlying colonization and inspiring early white abolitionists to attack slavery straight on. In a society suffused with racism; says Goodman; abolitionism stood apart by its embrace of racial equality as a Christian imperative.Goodman demonstrates that the abolitionist movement had a far broader social basis than was previously thought. Drawing on census and town records; his portraits of abolitionists reveal the many contributions of ordinary citizens; especially laborers and women long overshadowed by famous movement leaders. Paul Goodman's humane spirit informs these pages. His book is a scholarly legacy that will enrich the history of antebellum race and reform movements for years to come."[God] hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth."—Acts 17:26
#969637 in Books 1997-11-11 1997-11-11Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.82 x .96 x 5.98l; 1.28 #File Name: 0520212142400 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Paul's Treatment of InclusivenessBy John HudsonThis is a fun book to read. It is by a Jewish scholar who gets into a great conversation with the reader on what is going on in Paul's mind as he works through as expanding of relating faith to persons regardless of the Jewish requirement such as circumcision. This is a book to talk with and to.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy peter buikevery informative; not for those who aren't serious about study28 of 35 people found the following review helpful. Daniel; Be Mindful of Your AudienceBy Danusha V. GoskaI'm a fan of Boyarin's work. There's much to admire. For example; he takes a progressive attitude towards issues of gender; including the status of women and of homosexuals; and he takes this stance as an Orthodox Jew. As a church-going Catholic who actively supports Gay Rights; I admire Boyarin both for his faith and for his support of gender non-conforming people.In a world of intolerant; rigid; and destrucitve so-called "fundamentalists" and "fundamentalisms" insisting that there is ONLY ONE way to read a text or a tradition; including scripture and the history of Judaism and/or Christianity; insisting that the ONE WAY to read the Judeo-Christian tradition is to read it as male supremacist and oppressive; I greatly appreciate that Boyarin says; as he says so clearly in his introduction to this work and in another book; "Unheroic Conduct;" that there are many ways to read texts and traditions.For example; as Boyarin says here; if one uses as one's starting point in Paul the verse; "In Christ there is no male; there is no female; there is no slave nor free man" one will read Paul very differently than others who see; in Paul; an oppressor who upheld slavery and the oppression of women.I also admire Boyarin's wide-ranging store of knowledge; his humanity; his enthusiasm; and his humor.And he takes on issues that this reader enjoys reading about.On the other hand; and it is a big other hand; Boyarin is a self-indulgent writer who has lived a sheltered; purely academic life. He writes as; one imagines; he would talk when talking to someone who shares his interests; his references; his enthusiasms; as closely as would a doppleganger or an imaginary best friend.Boyarin just about never shows any consideration for any audience who might not be an exact duplicate of him.So; the reader has to slog through paragraphs or pages not knowing what Boyarin is talking about; not because the ideas at play are all that complex -- they never really are -- but because neither Boyarin nor his editors have taken the time to frame what Boyarin is saying in a way that will be readily understood by someone who is not sharing the exact same brainpan as Boyarin himself.Oh; how I wish there were an edited version of Boyarin's books; in which references that need not be obscure are presented in a way so that someone who has not lunched with the exact same clique of grad students that Boyarin has lunched with would be able to grasp what Boyarin is saying; without reaching for outside references -- which; sadly; I always have to do when reading Boyarin -- or slogging through his endless; and; yes; self-indulgent footnotes.This is a positive review. Boyarin is; again; well educated; enthusiastic; and he takes a humanist approach from a tradition; the Judeo-Christian tradition; that too often has been used as an excuse to oppress others. His work is a marvelous antidote to intolerant "fundamentalisms" and "fundamentalists."But; Daniel; if you would -- please be a bit more mindful of your audience. Making your work more readily accessible would be a very good thing; because the wider world -- the one outside of Berkeley -- greatly needs voices like yours.
