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56th out of 205 books
—
176 voters
The Wages of Whiteness: Race and the Making of the American Working Class
In an afterword to this new edition, Roediger discusses recent studies of whiteness and the changing face of labor itself. He surveys criticism of his work, accepting many objections whilst challenging others, especially the view that the study of working class racism implies a rejection of Marxism and radical politics.
Paperback, 197 pages
Published
January 17th 1999
by Verso
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This book is written very academically, so sometimes I had to read it outloud just to comprehend. But the history and information is really important and often unknown. It's really important for me to understand how whiteness was developed in this country, and this book REALLY helps with that - especially with the intersection of race and class.
There is a lot of important, quality scholarship in this book, and it is a must read for anyone analyzing the history of race or class in America. Roediger is one of those authors that you have to read and either agree or disagree with. The problem here is that the book seems unfocused sometimes and looking back on it, it's hard to keep the really important points clear in one's head. Notes must be taken. That's not necessarily a good thing: yes, it is always important to take notes, but the gis...more
This book is totally overrated. He basically argues that the white working-class was the historical force that produced white supremacy.
Where was capitalism in all this?
Where was capitalism in all this?
Using a fair amount of neo-marxism, Roediger runs the gauntlet of race in the antebelum United States. He argues for the establishment of Unions and the modern working condition as a result of the mobility of being white. In a somewhat less than idealistic manner indentured white people accessed their status of being "non-black" or "non-slave" to manipulate the system into letting them out of indenturement. The book is packed with interesting tidbits of history that help lock the argument down i...more
Apr 11, 2013
Vincent
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
america-to-1865,
anthropology-and-sociology
David R. Roediger’s The Wages of Whiteness: Race and the Making of the American Working Class, published in 1991, is among the first scholarly works to seriously address the emergence of American “whiteness”. One might expect such a treatment, which comes on the heels of the politically correct resurgence (think of the 1994 film, “PCU”), to be a reactionary defense of how white Americans had been depicted or treated in the historical analysis of the previous two decades. However, Roediger instea...more
For someone who has issues with David Roediger, I've read more than one of this books/anthologies.
This is a very interesting narrative on how class-based inequalities during the early independence period in US history became increasingly racialized by the need of poor white folks to differentiate themselves from poor black folks.
While it's quite a depressing read, it's worth noting that it contextualizes how the Irish became white, along with other groups.
This is a very interesting narrative on how class-based inequalities during the early independence period in US history became increasingly racialized by the need of poor white folks to differentiate themselves from poor black folks.
While it's quite a depressing read, it's worth noting that it contextualizes how the Irish became white, along with other groups.
Tough to comment on so hard on the heels of finishing it. Marxist interpretations of racial formation can be a little tough to handle. I think a lot of people struggle to digest Roediger for a variety of reasons. Some people don't want to talk about race at all. Some people don't want to talk about whiteness in particular. Some people think Marxist interpretations of race come off as dispassionate, or just flat out misguided. It's certainly a germinal text (if not _the_) in whiteness studies, so...more
I think this book is a pretty good historical overview of the development of whiteness. A fair bit of the book seems to argue against various interpretations pushing for the author's, but there is a good bit of information in the book that makes it worth reading. Unfortunately, there is not much insight in the book for moving forward, which is the book's most significant drawback.
I felt torn about how to rate this book. On one hand, it's an excellent exploration of why class and race are deeply tied in the United States. It also does a fantastic job talking about the consolidation of whiteness in opposition to blackness. Yet, I found it strangely dated. Perhaps that's a product of having read so many books that cite "Wages of Whiteness"-- I already knew how folks adapted, expanded, and revised the arguments Roediger presents. These works add nuance that, I think, is lack...more
Roediger goes too far, I think, in emphasizing class at the expense of race--particularly given the historical period in focus here--but there's no denying that this is an important book.
I've been meaning to read this book for years, so I'm glad I finally did. It's a pretty accessible book--Roediger delivers a thoughtful cultural expansion on the arguments for the economic aspects of white racism of W.E.B. Du Bois' "Black Reconstruction," drawing as well on the decolonial psychoanalytic theory of Frantz Fanon. I particularly appreciated Roediger's explorations of class and race in language, as well as his treatment of the role of minstrelsy in the formation of the "white" workin...more
This book gives an historical overview of how whiteness developed as a category of privilege and advantage in US history.
An okay book. Nice perspective on the use of language. Not made for those with a limited knowledge of history.
A classic, got to read this to understand the US working class.
Reviewed here.
Whiteness needs to be examined to truly address racism, and this history of the "whiting" of the labor movement and those immigrant groups who assimilated into the labor movement is seminal.
It examines not just how groups assimilate, but also tellingly how that assimilation came at the expense/expulsion of others from the ranks of organized labor.
This book kicks ass.
It examines not just how groups assimilate, but also tellingly how that assimilation came at the expense/expulsion of others from the ranks of organized labor.
This book kicks ass.
The first book I read for college. It was difficult to adjust to the academic style, and at the time I really did not enjoy the book for it's frequent jumping from period to period and sometimes confusing writing style. But I've found that it's affected my thinking, in a typical 'read this in college and it blew my mind' fashion.
In an afterword to this new edition, Roediger discusses recent studies of whiteness and the changing face of labor itself. He surveys criticism of his work, accepting many objections whilst challenging others, especially the view that the study of working class racism implies a rejection of Marxism and radical politics.
good book about how race is not just something that divides the working class, but gives psychological and material benefits to white people which results in them acting against their economic interests and forestalls class solidarity.
Mar 08, 2008
Hannah
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
everyoned, dad!
Recommended to Hannah by:
PTR!
Although I have some questions about the way this book ends, I found it over all to be very good. Thorough and thoughtful, well-written and readable, it also opens important space for future study.
Roediger is one of those who have helped me understand my own whiteness, and the fact that it is a social construction – not just a myth, but a combination of myth, power, and habit.
Really good about labor history and racial history and how they intertwine. Ok, I feel like I'm getting to have too many of these kinds of books, obviously I have a topic I like.
The long chapter on the Irish at the end felt like filler
Interested in race, class, history, and culture in the U.S.? Read this book.
Racism and the working class - really good theories, history.
Ever gone to a Mummer's Parade before? Same thing.
May 23, 2013
Dejiariyo
marked it as to-read
May 23, 2013
Benedict Gambino
marked it as to-read
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