Tuesday, October 19, 2010

How the Irish Became White by Noel Ignatiev

This book traces the historical development of the Irish people in the United States from an oppressed race to part of the oppressive race. The historical work seems alright, and I appreciate the analysis of class and race (analysis undertaken too infrequently in an American context), but I finished this book wanting more theoretical work--more of a methodology of analysis. It didn't help that Ignatiev uses literature in ways that I find suspect: I don't think it works as evidence in the ways he uses it.

No comments: