Description
Book SynopsisFranklin Delano Roosevelt famously declared that the greatest duty of a statesman is to educate.
The central claim of Why Moralize upon It? is that it is not only statesmen who can help educate a democratic citizenry, but also novelists and filmmakers. This book's title is drawn from Melville's Benito Cereno. Near the end of this novella, after he has put down a rebellion of enslaved Africans, the American captain Amasa Delano claims that the past is passed, and thus there is no need to moralize upon it.
Melville suggests, though, that it is crucial for Americans to critically examine American history and American political institutions; otherwise, they may be blind to the existence of injustices which will ultimately undermine democracy. Danoff argues that novels and films play a crucial role in helping democratic citizens undertake the moral reflection that must be engaged with in order to preserve their political community and render it forever worthy of the s
Trade Review“Brian Danoff reveals the unparalleled capacity of the novel and film to illuminate the complexity of political life and to foster the moral reflection necessary for democracy. In doing so, Danoff demonstrates that Herman Melville, Ralph Ellison, and Robert Penn Warren are indeed some of America's greatest statesmen.” -- Natalie Fuehrer Taylor, Skidmore College
“Danoff incisively reveals and explores the crucial significance of reading great American literature, and watching great American films, to the success of our unique experiment in self-government. This impressive achievement could not have come at a better time for an American political culture that is in desperate need of resuscitation." -- Adam Seagrave, Arizona State University
Table of ContentsIntroduction
1 “I’m the Captain Now”: Power, Justice, and Tragedy in “Benito Cereno” and Captain Phillips
2 Invisible Man and Democratic Leadership
3 “Into the Convulsion of the World”: All the King’s Men, Democratic Leadership, and Political Action
4 The Quiet American and Political Judgment
Conclusion
