Citizen: Jane Addams and the Struggle for Democracy

By Louise W. Knight

Book Overview

Jane Addams was the first American woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Now Citizen , Louise W. Knight's masterful biography, reveals Addams's early development as a political activist and social... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0226446999
• ISBN13: 9780226446998
• Release Date: November 2005
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Length: 598 Pages
• Weight: 2.21 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 1.8" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

An American Hero

This is a book about a woman who made a difference. It is also the story of a woman's triumph over Victorian ideas about a woman's place and over personal uncrtainties. Jane Addams became a leading humanitarian and spokesperson for women but she also led struggles which enhanced the notion of democracy in this country and the world. Ms. Addams did not see democracy as neoconservatives see it today. She was not a fighter for capitalism or Republican values but rather for participation and inclusion. She was also a crusader for world peace. Jane Addams and her colleagues were not like 21st century Americans. She was practically humorless and was moved by moral imperatives almost unknown to us. However, she, aside from being the "real thing", was famous for her kindness to immigrants and children. This book deals with her early life and her humanitarian efforts in the United States. It discusses the founding of Hull House, one of the first settlement houses in this country, and relates the operation of Hull House to the awakening of Addams' interest in many important causes. The book is a good read for those who are interested in women's history or in the history of reform and, indeed, radicalism in this country (for she was a radical). It is well researched and written and does not try to turn Addams into a midwestern Mother Teresa.