An American testament : a narrative of rebels and romantics / by Joseph Freeman.

By: Material type: TextTextPublication details: New York, NY : Farrar & Rinehart Incorporated, 1936Description: x, 678 pages ; 24 cmSubject(s): LOC classification:
  • HX 84 .F7 A3 1936
Online resources:
Contents:
Book One: I. A vanished village -- II. The golden realm -- III. Guides for the perplexed -- IV. Apocalypse --
Book Two: I. Saviors in cap and gown -- II. The triumph of life --III. Time and eternity -- IV. Dialogues across the sea --
Book Three: I. Against the stream -- II. The happy island -- III. The party -- IV. Idealists -- V. The strange twenties -- VI. The new masses -- VII. Greta --
Book Four: I. Expedition -- II. Tiflis --
Book Five: I. New found land -- II. Hedda -- III. Einstein's holy grail -- IV. Turning points.
Summary: "Very rarely is an autobiography important as a work of art, a creation with such depth and meaning that it seems to contain the whole of an era as well as a man. Mr. Freeman's account of his life is such a book; it traces the spiritual and intellectual history of our time as brilliantly as it does the author's own complex and vigorous development. Born in Russia, his earliest experiences were with poverty, first the ancient and hopeless misery of the poor in Czarist Russia, and later the vital, sprawling, noisy, heart-breaking poverty of the slum streets of New York. Little by little he begins to emerge from his squalid background, in high school and later in college, by his friendship with Floyd Dell and Max Eastman, by his trip to Europe and his newspaper work over there. As Mr. Freeman's narrative continues, the horizon broadens, and the conflicts become more intense. The opposition of the democratic and capitalist America to the revolutionary ideas derives from a childhood of poverty, and conflict with members of the revolutionary proletariat sets up a psychological stress and strain which essentially epitomizes the dilemma of the whole modern world. The rich brilliance of the writing synthesizes the forces at work in art, politics, and society, illustrating them by the shapes of the author's own life, and the account of his later years, crowded with the figures of contemporary history, makes irresistible reading. Throughout the book the reader is aware of a fine, humane, sensitive personality. Mr. Freeman's record is in the truest sense a testament of our times, worthy to rank with 'The Education of Henry Adams.'" -- From the book jacket.Content advice: This resource contains language that may be harmful.
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Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Status Notes Date due Barcode
BOOKS BOOKS Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library General Stacks HX 84 .F7 A3 1936 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Not For Loan Signed by the author. NPML21080013

Includes an index.

Book One: I. A vanished village -- II. The golden realm -- III. Guides for the perplexed -- IV. Apocalypse --

Book Two: I. Saviors in cap and gown -- II. The triumph of life --III. Time and eternity -- IV. Dialogues across the sea --

Book Three: I. Against the stream -- II. The happy island -- III. The party -- IV. Idealists -- V. The strange twenties -- VI. The new masses -- VII. Greta --

Book Four: I. Expedition -- II. Tiflis --

Book Five: I. New found land -- II. Hedda -- III. Einstein's holy grail -- IV. Turning points.

"Very rarely is an autobiography important as a work of art, a creation with such depth and meaning that it seems to contain the whole of an era as well as a man. Mr. Freeman's account of his life is such a book; it traces the spiritual and intellectual history of our time as brilliantly as it does the author's own complex and vigorous development. Born in Russia, his earliest experiences were with poverty, first the ancient and hopeless misery of the poor in Czarist Russia, and later the vital, sprawling, noisy, heart-breaking poverty of the slum streets of New York. Little by little he begins to emerge from his squalid background, in high school and later in college, by his friendship with Floyd Dell and Max Eastman, by his trip to Europe and his newspaper work over there. As Mr. Freeman's narrative continues, the horizon broadens, and the conflicts become more intense. The opposition of the democratic and capitalist America to the revolutionary ideas derives from a childhood of poverty, and conflict with members of the revolutionary proletariat sets up a psychological stress and strain which essentially epitomizes the dilemma of the whole modern world. The rich brilliance of the writing synthesizes the forces at work in art, politics, and society, illustrating them by the shapes of the author's own life, and the account of his later years, crowded with the figures of contemporary history, makes irresistible reading. Throughout the book the reader is aware of a fine, humane, sensitive personality. Mr. Freeman's record is in the truest sense a testament of our times, worthy to rank with 'The Education of Henry Adams.'" -- From the book jacket.

This resource contains language that may be harmful.

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