Welcome to this month's reading group selection. David Von Drehle mentions The Melting Pot , a play by Israel Zangwill, that premiered on Broadway in 1908. At that time theater was accessible to a broad section of the public, not the exclusive domain it has become over the decades. Zangwill carried a hopeful message that America was a place where old hatreds and prejudices were pointless, and that in this new country immigrants would find a more open society. I suppose the reference was more an ironic one for Von Drehle, as he notes the racial and ethnic hatreds were on display everywhere, and at best Zangwill's play helped persons forget for a moment how deep these divides ran. Nevertheless, "the melting pot" made its way into the American lexicon, even if New York could best be describing as a boiling cauldron in the early twentieth century. Triangle: The Fire That Changed America takes a broad view of events that led up the notorious fire, noting the gro
I still have a 1936 printing of the book but have yet to read it ~ with my diminishing eyesight, I better get started soon!
ReplyDeleteI think it is best to look for a buyer. Probably fetch a pretty handsome sum if it is a first printing,
ReplyDeletehttp://www.veryfinebooks.com/Mitchell_Gone_With_the_Wind_Signed_First_Edition_p/sfe400.htm
$7,500! Wow ~ too bad mine is from the third printing that year, is not signed, and has cracks on the books cover. It probably would fetch a few samolians - I'll check with ebay or something like them ...
ReplyDeleteFunny,I haven't heard samolians used since high school in 74.I see a few posts vanished from the previous heading when Google had issues the other night.
ReplyDelete