David J. Garrow
Paperback | Pages: 800 pages Rating: 4.33 | 1921 Users | 98 Reviews
List Regarding Books Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
| Title | : | Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference |
| Author | : | David J. Garrow |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 800 pages |
| Published | : | January 6th 1999 by Harper Perennial (first published December 1st 1986) |
| Categories | : | History. Biography. Nonfiction. Race. North American Hi.... American History |
Chronicle Concering Books Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
"Early morning, April 4th,Shot rings out in the Memphis sky,
Free at last! They took your life,
They could not take your pride" (Bono, U2).
I learned so many things from this book. For example, that MLK was assassinated at 6 pm, so Bono got that wrong in his lyrics when he says "early morning". Then of course "pride" rhymes a bit with "life", so it worked in the song, but other than that, i believe it would be a poor choice to summarize the spirit of Martin Luther King with the word "pride".
"Bearing the cross" is a long book. 800 pages with 170 pages of footnotes. It is, as the cover says, "the most informative life of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the most thorough study of the civil rights movement" (from the New York Review of Books). Note that this comment does not express any literary quality, or, for that matter, any reason at all why you should read this book unless you need to do a research on MLK and you don't have access to Google.
The writing is as dry as sand. Most of the book can be described as a collection of data and facts, organized in chronological order, from Rosa Parks to MLK's death. Many paragraphs begin with "The following day", or "Later that afternoon" or even "Twenty minutes later". That's the level of detail!! Garrow took many years to put this book together, and he had access to an immense amount of hard-copy information, from interviews to newspapers to copies of FBI wiretaps.
Now, this is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, the subject matter is so important and fascinating per se, that it still resounds and shines despite the flat, dry writing. To be fair to the author, at some points he will concede a little dramatization, in the choice of a particular verb or in the semi-emotional conclusion of a chapter. Mind you, we are talking about 1% emotion and 99% cold delivery of facts.
But emotion and drama is precisely what Garrow wanted to avoid. As he says at the end, "by idolizing those whom we honor, we do a disservice both to them and to ourselves". His goal seems to be the 360 degrees representation of MLK as a man, almost as a reaction to all the hype and drama that seems to engulf and cloud MLK's history.
I can tell you that after reading this book I feel like I know MLK thoughts, feelings and motivations much, much better than what I did before. And that is a good thing.
I can tell you that this man's life should celebrated even more than what it is today, for what it represents. His weaknesses, his womanizing, his over-eating and his vanity, are dwarfed by his achievements and by the historical weight of the civil rights movement. MLK was not the only black movement's leader, he was not the smartest, he was not the first or most original. But he became a symbol. That he accepted to live as such an important symbol for the last 10 years of his life, while thinking of quitting almost every other day, is a remarkable thing.
One thing above everything else differentiated him and elevated his message to real "majestic heights": his relentless commitment to non-violence.
Now, I felt the importance of MLK's religious faith was addressed but not properly highlighted by Garrow. It's understandble, for when you collect an endless series of facts, you won't find much that says "on that morning, he knelt down and prayed for 10 minutes", etc. Unfortunately, Garrow touches on MLK's spiritual side only at the beginning, ignoring it almost completely for the rest of the book. This is in line with the fact-shoveling style of the book, but it pays little respect to MLK's most important relationship, the one he had with God.
Despite the author's lack of interest for the importance that King's spiritual life had for himself and the people around him, the author never forgets to mention that King, whatever he was doing, was always "extremely tired", "exhausted", almost every two pages. It gets ridiculous after a while. Oh, I certainly believe it to be true. Not hard at all to believe. To keep up with his schedule, he was taking some non specified "pills". Again, not surprising at all. Every big political figure, today like in the past, is constantly using medicines and drugs to be able to keep going at that super-human pace.
But if you find the time to write that Dr King was exhausted all the time, had a slight bronchitis on that day, and a cough the other day, why don't you find any time to mention his constant, daily praying, or at least some comments on some religious sermons he held, that was far more important stuff? One time MLK goes on holiday and then he's back on the road for a series of speeches, and again every single thing Garrow describes must be preceded by "despite his exhaustion, King did this and that...". Please give me a break. MLK was a big boy, a 30-something man with the constitution of a bull who, just like thousands of businessmen, yesterday and today, had to fly around and work long hours. Is that so out of the ordinary? I was really baffled by this aspect of the book. Perhaps writing the book became such an exhausting task for Garrow that he found the need to express his own feelings of exhaustion through MLK's life? But i'm overthinking here.
At any rate, I really enjoyed reading this book. This is history at its most detailed, which means you are free to judge and jump to conclusions, but not to invent something that is not true, or to exaggerate things. I found particularly grippong the part about the relationship with the FBI, and the conflict with J E Hoover, the Darth Vader of those years.
MLK was a pastor. He came from a priviledged background. He was a very gifted and spiritual man, who was chosen by history to play a special, unique part. Watching his speeches and interviews (on youtube) after having read this book is a particularly moving experience. Despite being aware of his shortfalls and weaknesses, you are even more inspired and filled with admiration.
And what an orator. In the words murmured by JFK immediately after the "I have a dream" speech in Washington: "He is damn good".
Declare Books In Favor Of Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
| Original Title: | Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., And The Southern Christian Leadership Conference |
| ISBN: | 0688166326 (ISBN13: 9780688166328) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Characters: | Martin Luther King Jr. |
| Literary Awards: | Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography (1987) |
Rating Regarding Books Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Ratings: 4.33 From 1921 Users | 98 ReviewsAssessment Regarding Books Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
This was a long book. And then I wrote a long review and it disappeared. To summarize- Great book. Chapters Selma and the Chicago Housing Movement were my favorite. His speech on 513 about being so tired and marches being so beautiful was especially powerful to me. "Black is as beautiful as any color." Reading about the FBI and wiretappings and all that was so intriguing and got me so frustrated at points- is this what our tax dollars should really be paying for? he wasn't a "communist threat".Very good book. I was born in 1965 so don't remember much but thoroughly enjoyed this book. Author discusses Montgomery Bus Boycott and formation of SCLC. There are many details of the campaigns pursued by SCLC and all the different figures involved in the organization. One thing I learned that I was not aware of was the staff issues and disorganization of some of the SCLC campaigns. Good biography of King and details his issues with SCLC, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and the FBI. Really enjoyed this
David J. Garrow has provided an extensive study of Martin Luther King Jr. and his work within the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in his book Bearing the Cross. With a title that portrays the religious and spiritual aspect of Kings personal civil rights vision, as well as the exhaustive extent of the undertaking that would take its toll on King both physically and mentally, Garrow too has undertaken quite a task in writing his in depth and fact filled study. Using hundreds of
Late one night in 1956, MLK sat in his kitchen thinking about stepping back from the civil rights moment. But then he heard a voice say, "Stand up for justice. Stand up for truth." From that moment, he was committed. Garrow focuses on what gave MLK strength during his historic struggle.Bearing the Cross is a Pulitzer Prize-winning book about Martin Luther King Jr. and his participation in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s. Rosa Parks was a tired tailor's assistant on her way home
A comprehensive biography of Martin Luther King Jr. He is obviously the most significant figure in the latter half of American history in the 20th century. Martin Luther King is the moral conscience of America bringing attention to its racism and its obsession with materialism. King always stressed and believed in non-violence. He was ignored by the Eisenhower administration and persecuted by the Kennedys.It was Robert Kennedy who authorized the wire-taping of Kings residence and hotel rooms.
This was a long and heavy read. It never attempts to eulogise Martin Luther King, although in some ways it plays down some of his failings, particularly his personal ones. He was clearly an inspiring figurehead, who cared little for personal aggrandisement or wealth and who worked tirelessly to serve the cause of non violence, clearly at considerable harm to his own health. But it is also clear that he was a failure as a leader of an organisation, his management skills were poor and he had
Martin Luther King, Jr. is one of the most fascinating human beings to have ever walked the face of the Earth. For 12 ½ years of his life, he stood in the spotlight of public attention as a leader of The Civil Rights Movement. King, at first, was a reluctant leader, but at some point, he saw that the Movement was bigger than himself, that the whole Movement was destined to change society. King saw his role in the Movement as not unlike his Call to preach. King felt that God demanded his
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