The man Molly Ivins calls "splendidly cranky academic," delivers a remarkably original and humourous examination of the current failure of the American imagination in the media, politics, education, art, technology and religion. More than an incisive critique, 'The Middle Mind' offers and alternative vision to liberate us from the dangerous mindset that threatens America's intellectual and cultural freedoms.
Every day we are assailed by political power plays between the competent ideologies of the right and left vying for our allegiance. But acclaimed social critic Curtis White argues that these polarized forces are a distraction from the dominant force currently shaping our present day reality. 'The Middle Mind' is a pervasive attitude that thrives in the common ground of unquestioned mediocrity. All we seem to ask about the culture we experience daily is whether it is entertaining. Does a political scandal make for good copy? Does network programming let us unwind from a day's work? Does the art at the local museum make for cocktail conversation? 'The Middle Mind' is winning and remains unquestioned because it is neutral, widespread, easily digestible, and most importantly requires no thought. The end result is that the American imagination is disabled and no longer out and about challenging the status quo.
Whether you abhor the political correctness of the left or the moral proselytizing of the right, Curtis White shows that the danger is not in a specific viewpoint but rather in how the Middle Mind stifles our critical capacities leaving us unable to think outside the expected norms. As funny as Michael Moore's 'Stupid White Men', irreverent as Andre Cordescu's 'Hail, Babylon!', and far-reaching as Neil Postman's 'Amusing Ourselves To Death', Curtis White argues that we have become content with the status quo and have stopped challenging the gross assumptions made daily in the media, politics, education, art, technology and religion. Confronting this immediate crisis of a nation blindly following the path of least resistance, White concludes with a call to reclaim the once powerful and creative American imagination.
