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    White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America
    Unavailable
    White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America
    Unavailable
    White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America
    Ebook778 pages13 hours

    White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America

    By Nancy Isenberg

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    The New York Times Bestseller

    A ground-breaking history of the class system in America, which challenges popular myths about equality in the land of opportunity.

    In this landmark book, Nancy Isenberg argues that the voters who boosted Trump all the way to the White House have been a permanent part of the American fabric, and reveals how the wretched and landless poor have existed from the time of the earliest British colonial settlements to today's hillbillies.

    Poor whites were central to the rise of the Republican Party in the early nineteenth century and the Civil War itself was fought over class issues nearly as much as it was fought over slavery. Reconstruction pitted white trash against newly freed slaves, which factored in the rise of eugenics - a widely popular movement embraced by Theodore Roosevelt that targeted poor whites for sterilization. These poor were at the heart of New Deal reforms and Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society; they are now offered up as entertainment in reality TV shows, and the label is applied to celebrities ranging from Dolly Parton to Bill Clinton. Marginalized as a class, white trash have always been at or near the centre of major political debates over the character of the American identity.

    Surveying political rhetoric and policy, popular literature and scientific theories over four hundred years, Isenberg upends assumptions about America's supposedly class-free society - where liberty and hard work were meant to ensure real social mobility - and forces a nation to face the truth about the enduring, malevolent nature of class.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAtlantic Books
    Release dateJan 5, 2017
    ISBN9781786492999
    Unavailable
    White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America
    Author

    Nancy Isenberg

    Elizabeth Leo has held senior leadership and management posts in universities and schools in the UK. She has led research and development with academies, maintained schools and local education authorities to promote strategic leadership that transforms teacher and student motivation, learning and achievement. Her research and publications focus on improving academies and schools in high poverty, highly disadvantaged communities from a cognitive-motivational perspective.

    Read more from Nancy Isenberg

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    Reviews for White Trash

    3.5/5

    327 ratings47 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I found this quite fascinating. I never really enjoyed history growing up and I think it's due to my teachers not making it fun and interesting. Nancy does a great job of explaining the class system in America and what the different classes mean especially white trash, redneck, and other of the "lesser" classes over the past 400 years. I really learned a lot. I also now understand why that class is fascinated with Trump and wanted him for president. He figured out what to say to them and to bring himself to their level of thinking.
    • 3/5
      While well researched and extremely readable, this book was something of a disappointment because it did not give the reader any solution to the vast population of ignorant people that seem to inhabit our country. The fact that they have been here for 400 years is cold comfort to this reader.
    • 5/5
      Suprelative. A coherent critique of the American pretense that America, having liberated itself from royalty and aristocracy in 1776, rid itself of oligarchy and racism. Also a defence of equality and democracy, and the rights of the "common' person in an era of elitist "meritocracy".
    • 4/5
      Is the US a "classless society? This book explores the concepts of class and how politics and culture shape views of members of society, especially the poor. Very interesting read.
    • 3/5
      Not really a study of class in America unless the southeast is America. The author is overly fixated on the effects of slavery and mostly ignores other causes.
    • 3/5
      What an interesting book about the history of class in America, and to learn the founding fathers who absolute snobs. In the land of equality, the poor still suffer a meagre existence and have little hope of advancement. Isenberg covered each and every president and the discussion that not many presidents rose from rags to riches. Andrew Jackson and his wife Rachel remain the ultimate "trash" in regard to prior presidents throughout the roster of American leaders. I had not known that America had such an extreme class structure in the early history, as I thought that all citizens struggled to survive and find freedom in this New World
    • 2/5
      I'm just frustrated with this book. I thought it was good, and then I thought it was bad, and then I thought for sure it was going to end on a high note and the author lost me. I think what bothered me the most, was that while trying to be objective I think the author also defends people that I disagree with. I also didn't feel like this book was about financial or social class necessarily, as much as it was about the opinions that are harbored for or against someone with a certain geographical background. The reason for my two star review was that I do not feel like I would ever recommend this book. While this book is undoubtedly ground breaking, and I don't discount that it should be hailed, it was not my cup of tea.
    • 4/5
      The authors did a thorough job of looking at the history and how we come to regard the White Trash background.
    • 4/5
      "White Trash" offers a fascinating new lens on American class history. The author presents a sort of Howard Zinn ("A People's History of the United States") reinterpretation, upending the tropes we learned in history class. I very much appreciated her analysis. The material on the eugenics movement in America was stunning to me. Nancy Isenberg drew a connecting line from colonial days, with the lower-class cast-off indentured servants sent from England, through to Elvis Presley and Bill Clinton. I still believe there is more work to do in understanding these various threads of the "American spirit," as Isenberg calls it. The reading is slow at points. All in all, though, a good addition to our understanding of the origins of class in America.
    • 4/5
      This is a challenging book to review, I learned so much reading it and it roused so many feelings in me and I found what it says about humans in general and America in particular depressing as hell. I did not finish this book feeling positive about our species and our future, and I suspect that had I finished reading it before the election in 2016 I suspect I wouldn't have been as caught off guard by the end result.This book challenged me, educated me and made me think way outside my comfort zone. It wasn't a fun read but it was fascinating and important and is a must read.
    • 4/5
      A 3.5 for me. Fascinating history well researched. I learned a great deal, admired the compelling connections made by the author, and knew I would not nave made the connections myself. But ....its a bit of an organizational mess. some matters are covered in painful detail and others glossed over without being connected to the central thesis. This muddies the message. Some of these unmade points are clarified in the epilogue, but it is too little too late. Overall a very worthwhile and engaging read though imperfect.
    • 5/5
      Given the current backlash to advances in racial equality, I wanted to get a fuller vision of the history of class issues in this country. Most books talk mostly about racial issues when discussing class, because we are so uncomfortable talking about class in the States. But by removing race from the conversation (in a manner), Isenberg does a wonderful job explaining how race resentment has been stoked among the poor whites of this country in order to keep them from protesting the actual reasons for income inequality and imbalance--class distinctions. The waves of populism, nationalism, and isolationism that this country has seen can be tied directly to this misdirection by the wealthy and power-holders of the rage held by the less well-off. Strongly recommended for those interested in understanding American history and present.
    • 2/5
      This book had some good points and could be a first rate study on class in America, but it totally misses the interplay between the populists movements of the late 19th and early 20th century and their impact on American politics and view of class issues. If you want to find out about class tension throughout America, this is not the book for you. The book is not about class in America, only Southern White Trash. And the author goes out of her way to demonstrate that all conservatives are in reality a manifestation of Southern White Trash. I had a hard time getting past the numerous anachronistic issues (for instance, blaming an 19th century writers theory on misguided trickle down economics pg 162) and obvious political bias (page 277 - the only way people can get out of poverty is through government intervention, page 316 - people such as Trump, George W. Bush, and Paris Hilton are only known because of Nepotism..."Even some men of recognized competence in national politics are products of nepotism: Albert Gore Jr., Rand Paul, Andrew Cuomo, and numerous Kennedys" implying eveyone else is not competent). I wanted to follow some of her reasoning by reading footnotes and found out that the footnote had nothing to do with the point she was making page 140 footnote 12) I think i would have received a failing grade if I handed this in for one of my history papers.
    • 5/5
      I learned a lot of new history, especially in the first part which covers the colonial era through Andrew Jackson. This could also be read as a history of science, as science was often used to rationalize class and race distinctions. Interesting, also, to compare the early chapters to An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution, which comes at colonial era class issues from the opposite side. The third part covering the 1970s onwards seems rushed. I was surprised that somehow Jeff Foxworthy wasn't mentioned during the discussion on the rehabilitation of "redneck" in the 1990s.
    • 4/5
      This nonfiction book on the history of Class in America was Very interesting! It was a little like reading ("listening to" in my case) a history book. But I'll say I sure learned a lot! And it was a lot different than what I learned in school! It was a little long, but worth it in the end. If you are interested in history, I would highly recommend this book.
    • 3/5
      This is an important book because it examines the history of class conflict in America. Unfortunately, Isenberg focuses on invective and politicians in a narrative that jumps from one political era to another without really giving a sense of the continuity in this country's refusal to consider class differences as worthy of discussion and possible remedy. She only nods at white-black relations, and simly does not address the nativism that is once again rising around the country.
    • 4/5
      An in-depth look at class in America from the early days at Jamestown through today. Insightful and entertaining, this book examines the history of and attitudes toward lower-class whites in the U.S. and considers whether upward mobility (via hard work and determination) is really as achievable as we like to believe.
    • 3/5
      Joy's review: Isenberg demonstrates that American has never been about equal opportunity by reviewing the history of how original settlers and land owners institutionalized and stigmatized the poor. She often losses her own plot by wandering off to describe in detail the plots of particular books or movies. (I really didn't need to read in detail the plot of "Deliverance"). Much tighter editing and adhering to a more clear thesis would have helped this book alot.
    • 5/5
      Fascinating depiction of the role that class has played in American history, from the earliest Colonial times. Unfortunately, I didn't apply myself well enough to finish this library book during its three week loan period. I should have suspected that another patron's hold would prevent me from renewing it, since I'd been on a long hold list before having my turn with it.
    • 5/5
      loved it. excellent book, excellent narrator. A fun and absorbing read. I never knew that white trash went back so far in history, just under different names. If you like cultural history and learning about how our ancestors lived and how they treated others - or perhaps were treated by others - you will love this book. Highly recommend.
    • 3/5
      Nancy Isenberg's White Trash is an ambitious survey of over 400 years of elite opinion on America's permanent white, mostly Southern underclass, the people pejoratively referred to as "white trash". The text draws upon a wide range of sources, from the writings of the Founding Fathers to modern reality TV shows. The poor, it turns out, have been with us since the early colonial period, and the people on bottom rung of the white socioeconomic ladder has always been dehumanized as expendable "rubbish". Isenberg's other point is that in the United States, a class system is alive and well, as much as Americans generally pretend that this is not the case. Isenberg's history is filled with politicians, novelists, eugenicists, and others delivering their thoughts about the white underclass. She cites well known figures with "hillbilly" roots such as Elvis Presley and Dolly Parton. But only once does she let a genuine poor white man speak for himself, and that is just briefly in the epilogue. More attention to the real people behind the labels might have made this book a more compelling read.
    • 4/5
      Have you ever wondered about whether the history you learned in school is really about what happened? Do you believe that this country wasn't built on a Class System? Reading this, very well documented book, will answer those questions. You'll learn about the long history of lying by our leaders going all the way back to the Founding Fathers. This was another book I learned about when the author was interviewed on CPAN Books. It was worth waiting for my name to bubble to the top of the county library waiting list.
    • 3/5
      There is a lot of interesting material here, but not as much analysis as I'd hoped, and what is there is fairly shallow. That's a consequence of trying to cover 400 years in 320 pages, I think -- it would have been a stronger book if she'd focused on the twentieth century. The strongest sections of the book cover the New Deal; she also has interesting things to say about Elvis, Lyndon Johnson, and Jimmy Carter. (Alas, the pages she devotes to the saga of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker don't offer much that is new.)

      I do harbor a secret hope that she will update the book with a chapter that covers this demographic's embrace of "billionaire" Donald Trump.
    • 5/5
      This book chronicles the treatment the poor in the US since its inception. It seems our "classless" society is no better than most others in its desire to exploit, dehumanize and continually encapsulate those at the bottom of the financial spectrum.
    • 3/5
      The United States is a class society. Even if there are opportunities for all, there will always be those that have and those that have not. Author Isenberg supports her opinions through a series of examples, statistics, and extensive notes. Each chapter contains historical figures, lessons learned and societal impacts. There are easily recognized icons, like the Beverly Hillbillies, Elvis Presley, Dolly Patron, Tammy Faye Baker, and others, that speak to meager ultra-poor beginnings. They also bring into question the authenticity of their rise from working poor to celebrity rich. The academic approach does not encourage a robust meaningful discussion or propose genuine incentive to change.
    • 4/5
      An ambitious attempt to tackle the formative story of white castoffs and how they populated the early American colonies due to the many British (and European) forces that propelled them, literally running for their lives. They became the labor force and agriculturer's of a growing new experiment. With them they brought industry and lethargy, both of which shaped the response of their elite landgrave owner/employer lords. Coming from a family that finds its roots in the Carolinas I read her treatment of these early colonies with great interest.
    • 3/5
      Well researched and poignant exploration of who we are and who we've been since the beginning. Very interesting. Looking forward to great conversations once some of my friends have read it... hint, hint.
    • 3/5
      Not really a study of class in America unless the southeast is America. The author is overly fixated on the effects of slavery and mostly ignores other causes.
    • 4/5
      Author Isenberg has done an exhaustive study of the origins of lower-class, poverty and the effects on American history. The notes at the back of the book are nearly one-fourth of the book itself. This is a bit slow going in the early pages of history but it finishes nicely.
    • 5/5
      A good book; it took quite a while to read it, and the early chapters are somewhat boring. If the author had led with her epilogue, that might have been better. The book becomes a fast read when the subject matter turns to the modern times and authors and movies and everything else. The problem is that Slavery was responsible for all of the country's growth before the civil war, and a good bit of its problems today. How is one expected to react to Trump except that he says what Republicans only dog whistle: he got the primary voters to approve him (he won everywhere) by appealing to their worst instincts, which are still alive in this nation. He is anti-black, and anti-woman, and anti-immigrant and the people who vote for him are the same. The reason that the author spends more time than may seem warranted on the South and its history is its unique relationship to Slavery, and its contribution to the myth about this country. It will never go away. I am appalled and regard this as a must read book. I think that she would have made a strong case anyway about our class differences if she stayed on the 21st and 20th century.