The Left Behind: Decline and Rage in Rural America

(Hardback)

Available Formats

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

How a fraying social fabric is fueling the outrage of rural Americans What is fueling rural America's outrage toward the federal government Why did rural Americans vote overwhelmingly for Donald Trump And, beyond economic and demographic decline, is there a more nuanced explanation for the growing rural-urban divide Drawing on more than a dec

Reviews

"Writing with empathy . . . the author reflects on the factors shaping rural life--from the importance of faith to the stability and familiarity of life in town to the importance of ritual events (barn dances, etc.), stories, and symbols--as well as pressing problems (brain drain, teen pregnancy, drugs, lack of good jobs) and concerns over moral decline (abortion and homosexuality). Wuthnow finds nuances: the isolation-ending benefits of the internet, Walmart, and 24/7 cable news have made rural residents more aware that the world 'was changing and leaving them behind.' His interviews are consistently revealing. . . . A superb, authoritative sociology book." * Kirkus *
"Mr. Wuthnow has conducted one of the deepest, most intimate examinations of small-town life ever undertaken."---David Shribman, The Globe and Mail
"Thanks to Wuthnows rich observations, we are able to address and understand what truly confronts us as a nation: the triumph of mass society through mass politics in the name of the 'little guy.' Little did we know that such a person would also have the hands to match."---L. Benjamin Rolsky, Los Angeles Review of Books

Author Bio

Robert Wuthnow is the Gerhard R. Andlinger '52 Professor of Social Sciences at Princeton University. His many books include American Misfits and the Making of Middle-Class Respectability, Small-Town America, and Remaking the Heartland (all Princeton).