A Call to Heroism: Renewing America's Vision of Greatness

by Peter H. Gibbon, Peter J. Gomes (Foreword)

In A Call to Heroism, Peter Gibbon argues that the heroes we honor are the embodiment of the ideals that America was founded liberty, justice, and tolerance chief among them. Because the very concept of heroism has come under threat in our cynical media age, Gibbon believes that we must forge a new understanding of what it means to be a hero to fortify our ideals as we engage our present challenges and face those that lay ahead. Gibbon examines the types of heroes that we have celebrated throughout our history, and along the way, he contemplates the meanings of seven monuments and artworks dedicated to heroes to examine what these places and things say about the America of their time—and what they mean for Americans today.

Full of insight and inspiration, A Call to Heroism is a provocative look at a timeless subject that has never been more important.


Chapter One What Is A Hero?
A look at the essence of heroism, and how we perceive it today

Hall of Fame for Great Americans
A contemplation of the Hall monument, built in New York City at the end of the 19th century by architecht Stanford White, and left to decay in the 1970s. Gibbon

Genres: Nonfiction, History

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Sarah]

I had to read this whingey, wanky, right-wing propaganda POS for a class, and it made me angry every single time I had to pick it up. My angry marginalia was the only thing that made the experience palatable.

Things you should know: 1) Gibbon is a bad historian, who apparently couldn't be bothered to verify information or fact check. 2) Gibbon is a racist. 3) Gibbon doesn't understand nuance. 4) Gibbon frequently undercuts his own arguments because he's a bad writer. 5) Gibbon wouldn't understand nuance if it bit him in his sad sack ass.

[Ietrio]

The deal is this: you should die, so Gibbon should feel great again. Or at least pay more taxes so he can feel better.

[Carole Rae]

This is the third time I've read this book! It's a book that really makes you think and open your eyes to the society we live in today. Even though it says "renewing America's vision of greatness" anyone from anywhere can get something out of this book. It talks about our generations view of "heroes" and what we care about.


I know it's not a usual book I read and review, but I really adore this book. I love books that open your eyes to reality and the reality is that we, as a Society, are losing our love of heroes. We rather see movies like 'Saw' or whatever instead of movies like 'Batman' or documentaries on our nations heroes. We rather see blood and gore and anti-heroes out in the world. I'll admit I love me a good gore-feast, but I do love to watch movies about a person or people who made a difference in the world. I don't mean to preach, but I tend to after reading this book. Peter Gibbon really stands firm and shows the facts for what they are.


'A Call to Heroism' is a wonderfully written book. You may think it sounds boring because its non-fiction and it preaches about how we rather talk about the bad in people instead of the good they did. However, I think its an important thing for look at and contemplate. Peter Gibbon does an excellent job with this book and you won't be sorry for reading it.


All-in-all, there is nothing negative I can really say about this novel, except that sometimes he will ramble on and on for a little while until he realizes he was rambling. I do that, so I can't pass judgement. Also, some spots became so dry I could hear the pages cracking... however, I recommend this book to those who would like something different and real to add to their reading list. It really makes you think about who you call a hero or who you SHOULD call a hero. Out of five stars I grant this one 4 stars. It would be 4.4 but I don't do decimals