Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Heart-rending. The classic work which moved so many to support social reforms.
Riis's commitment to record, report, and assist the poor tells of another time, when standards were quite different. It is not surprising, then, that his language reflects the context of his time. Many of his words seem awkward and racist when evaluated according to modern standards. It will seem odd to some modern readers, to hear such sweeping and biased generalizations of the poor, together with such genuinely compassionate, impassioned pleas for fair and ethical treatment of the poor, issuing from the same source.
There is no irony here. It is rather a reminder of real progress we have made, thanks to efforts by Riis and others, that we now recoil at some of the assumptions Riis states so freely and comfortably, prejudiced impressions which were well accepted then. Grateful for the real reforms we have achieved, nevertheless we should not be so smug as to criticize Riis's language. After all, our own great-grandchildren will inevitably find some of our accepted habits quite horrifying, and many of our activities inhumane.
Riis's work -- his photography and reporting of the desperate circumstances of children and families in the tenements -- brought information of these tragedies to the general public, and motivated the enactment of legislation intended to protect the poor, especially children. This work marks a milestone in American history, and is not to be missed!
Click Here to see more reviews about: How the other half lives; studies among the tenements of New York, by Jacob A. Riis; with illustrations chiefly from photographs taken by the author.
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University LibraryÕs preservation reformatting program.
No comments:
Post a Comment