Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word: Amazon.ca: Randall Kennedy: Books

Product Description

From Amazon

Nigger is Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy's ornate, lively monograph on what he calls the "paradigmatic" racial slur in the English language. A neutral noun in the 17th century, nigger had, by 1830, become an "influential" insult. Kennedy traces the word's history in literature, song, film, politics, sports, everyday speech, and the courtroom. He also discusses its plastic, contradictory, and volatile place in contemporary American society. Should it be eradicated from dictionaries and the language? Should it be, somehow, regulated? What is the significance of its emergence among some blacks as a term with "undertones of warmth and good will"? Do blacks have a historical right to its use or does that place the term under a "protectionist pall"? With courage and grave measure Kennedy has, in effect, created a forum for discussion of the word he calls a "reminder of the ironies and dilemmas, the tragedies and glories, of the American experience." --H. O'Billovitch

From Publishers Weekly

The word is paradigmatically ugly, racist and inflammatory. But is it different when Ice Cube uses it in a song than when, during the O.J. Simpson trial, Mark Fuhrman was accused of saying it? What about when Lenny Bruce uses it to "defang" it by sheer repetition? Or when Mark Twain uses it in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to make an antiracist statement? Kennedy, a professor at Harvard Law School and noted legal scholar, has produced an insightful and highly provocative book that raises vital questions about the relationship between language, politics, social norms and how society and culture confront racism. Drawing on a wide range of historical, legal and cultural instances Harry S. Truman calling Adam Clayton Powell "that damned nigger preacher"; Title VII court cases in which the use of the word was proof of condoning a "racially hostile work environment"; Quentin Tarantino's liberal use of the word in his films Kennedy repeatedly shows not only the complicated cultural history of the word, but how its meaning, intent and even substance change in context. Smart, well argued and never afraid of facing serious, difficult and painful questions in an unflinching and unsentimental manner, this is an important work of cultural and political criticism. As Kennedy notes in closing: "For bad or for good, nigger is... destined to remain with us for the foreseeable future a reminder of the ironies and dilemmas, the tragedies and glories, of the American experience." (Jan. 22)Forecast: This may be the book that reignites larger debates over race eclipsed by September 11. Look for a bestselling run and huge talk show and magazine coverage as the Afghanistan news cycle continues to slow; the book had already been the subject of two New York Times stories by early January.

See all Product Description

Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.

First Sentence
How should nigger be defined? Read the first page

Explore More
Concordance

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index

Tag this product

(What's this?)

Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.

Customer Reviews

59 Reviews

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

Average Customer Review

3.8 out of 5 stars (59 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A seemingly thorough ground for debate, May 2 2004

By

R. Chaffey "beckahi" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word (Paperback)

I had heard a lot about this book that made me curious to read it, but what finally prompted me to do so was through several discussions about offensive words, especially relating to literature. I was curious to find out what Randall Kennedy had to say on what he calls the "strange career of a troublesome word."

Kennedy's book takes us through the history of the word "nigger" and how it has been used, for insult and for good, throughout American history. Why is it that blacks can use the N-word as a sign of affection, yet coming from the lips of a white it is automatically offensive? What makes this one word seemingly more volatile than any other word in the English language? These are just a few of the questions that Kennedy attempts to bring to light in his example-bound treatise. "Nigger" is filled with examples - from song lyrics, to court cases, to literary passages, to the repertoires of comedians - to explore how this word is used and abused.

Randall Kennedy has covered all the bases to show how this word is deeply rooted in America's past as offensive, and how it is still taboo today, even though many African-Americans are trying to reclaim it for a positive use. Kennedy's writing is concise and thorough, offering various instances of "wrong" and "right" actions regarding the N-word. Yet at times, there seems to be almost too many examples. After a while, one wishes for more of an argument than a laundry listing of the word's history of discord. He offers little of his own opinion in the epilogue, only saying that he diasgrees with the useage of racially offensive words. I understand his need to remain unbiased, and realize that there may never be a right or wrong answer regarding the impact this word will have on American culture. Kennedy has succeeded at showing us its past; it's up to us to determine its future.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Informative, Feb 17 2004

By

Terence B. Washington "flowinj" (Columbia, SC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word (Paperback)

I used this book as my primary source for a school presentation. The book was informative and really made me think about the word nigger, its origin and its uses. Randall Kennedy includes a bunch of anecdotes and quotations from people we recognize (and some we don't) in order to show the impact of 'nigger' on humanity. I would recommend this book to anyone, especially blacks, as it opened my eyes and the eyes of my presentation's audience, the majority of which was white. As the lone black man in my high school class, I wanted to bring something new to my white schoolmates, but to my surprise, I learned a lot as well.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

4.0 out of 5 stars Thought Provoking, Nov 30 2003

By

JMack (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word (Paperback)

Randall Kennedy had a brilliant idea for a book. Unfortunately, the subject may be too complex for any mortal man to tackle in a reasonable amount of pages. Kennedy does open some eyes and has created some dialogue in regard to his subject, but the book will leave most readers with some unanswered questions.

Kennedy discusses many facets of this controversial word in his thought provoking book. After discussing the history of the word, he looks at its use in pop culture, law cases, as well as its overstigmatizing effect. Kennedy succeeds in stating these facts in a reasonably fair and balanced way. In large part, he avoids over-stating his opinion as part of the explanation.

While Kennedy proposes no direct solution to the problems created by this word, it is difficult to criticize him when any possible solution has its flaws. He does manage to create a long overdue dialogue on the subject. The cautions which can be drawn from this dialogue include being cautious of the context of the word and overstigmatizing those who use the word.

The fact that such a book exists demonstrates a deeper cultural understanding and defining of the word is being sought. This makes Kennedy's final product very credible.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 59 customer reviews on Amazon.ca

Want to see more reviews on this item?

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 78 reviews 3.9 out of 5 stars

Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars thought-provoking but inadequate
This book--which seems to consist largely of legal cases--barely touched on the cultural significance of the word "nigger. Read more

Published on Nov 19 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars The fanged Lexicom
I was very excited to see a book out on Black History with such a daring title. The hoopla in the paper and television show Boston Public made me very intrigued on this novel... Read more

Published on July 1 2003 by Catherine M. Dorkin