The Failure Of Our Fathers

"Examines the evolving position of non-elite whites in 19th Alabama society--from the state's creation through the end of the Civil War--through the lens of gender and family"--

With a new Introduction by the author, this seminal classic examines the hidden struggle faced by millions of men: how to reconcile their childhood images of their fathers as silent, stoic breadwinners with the life they want to live now.

Interweaving academic theory, (auto)ethnography, and memoir-styled narrative, Christopher M. Driscoll explores what the “white devil” trope means for understanding and responding to tensions emerging from toxic white masculinity. The book provides a historical and philosophical account of the “white devil” as it appears in the stories and myths of various black religious and philosophical traditions, particularly as these traditions are expressed through the contemporary cultural expression of hip-hop. Driscoll argues that the trope of the white devil emerges from a self-hatred in many white men that is concealed (and revealed) through various defence mechanisms – principally, anger – and the book provides rich ground to discuss the relationship between perceptions of self (i.e. who we are), emotional regulation, and our behaviour towards others (i.e. how we act).

No one questions that men are profoundly influenced by their fathers, but the shape and substance of that influence varies with each family. In this, the first anthology of nonfiction prose to explore this issue in depth, editor Steven Shepherd has collected a diverse and invariably compelling group of narratives about sons and their fathers. "Fourteen excellent essays by some of our best writers," says Anne Morris of the Austin American-Statesman. Among the contributors: James Baldwin, who reflects in his classic "Notes of a Native Son," on the father he barely knew, "partly because we shared, in our different fashions, the vice of stubborn pride." The brothers Geoffrey and Tobias Wolff, who write of their father from dramatically different perspectives. A second-generation undertaker, Thomas Lynch, who writes lovingly of burying his father. And the acclaimed scholar of African-American culture, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., who grew up with a father who "was not a race man," yet their arguments were vital to the son's education.

Based on seven years of archival research, the book describes previously unknown aspects of the electoral college crisis of 1800, presenting a revised understanding of the early days of two great institutions that continue to have a major impact on American history: the plebiscitarian presidency and a Supreme Court that struggles to put the presidency's claims of a popular mandate into constitutional perspective. Through close studies of two Supreme Court cases, Ackerman shows how the court integrated Federalist and Republican themes into the living Constitution of the early republic.

A nonfiction piece about the experience of shame turned toxic and its impact on the psychological and spiritual fate of mankind. This ten-chapter effort intertwines the literary substance of the book with a workbook component, designed to get the reader to move beyond a simple mental and intellectual endeavor and move toward an exercise of personal integration with the material. The experience of shame is universal, a human experience, but an experience that has the potential to turn toxic. Toxic shame can wreak havoc on the psychological development and well-being of the individual. But this author also purports that toxic shame can equally disrupt and damage the spiritual nature of the human experience. When Demons Rush In is a two-pronged approach, both psychological and spiritual, to understanding what this author believes is a devastating reality besieging the individual of our day. Specifically looking at the father-son relationship, the author focuses on this masculine relationship, his own relationship with his father, in a way to bring awareness and credibility to the author's insights into what plagues the fathers, the sons, and the men of our present-day societies. By focusing on shame turned toxic, its roots, its causes, its consequences, the author is seeking to draw attention to what he feels is a monumental threat to the fate of humankind. With special emphasis and focus on the spiritual, the author is challenging the reader to open their minds and hearts to a reality that remains unnoticed and unrecognized. As a first-time author, I have selected a subject to write about, that reflects both my professional and personal experiences. My own personal story is one of shame turned toxic, and as a licensed clinical psychologist, I have witnessed the devastating effects of toxic shame on the individual, their families, and on their communities.