The Way of Ignorance: And Other Essays

The Way of Ignorance: And Other Essays
by Wendell Berry

The Way of Ignorance: And Other Essays
List Price: $15.95
Our Price: $9.33
You Save: $6.62 (42%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $2.99 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


(Click here)
Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Wendell Berry
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-05-17
ISBN: 1593761198
Number of pages: 192
Publisher: Counterpoint

Book Reviews of The Way of Ignorance: And Other Essays

Book Review: It's All About Values
Summary: 5 Stars

I have read individual pieces by Berry before, but although I own three or four of his collections, I had never before read one in its entirety. Now I'm wondering why, and asking myself how soon I can fit another one into my reading schedule. To say that Berry is a Kentucky farmer doesn't quite capture his work, nor does saying that he is an essayist focusing on issues concerning agriculture and the communities that support and are supported by it (which in some way means all of us). Drawing on great skill and long experience as both a farmer and a writer, Berry manages to come across as simultaneously knowledgeable and humble, blunt and subtle, puzzled and confident. Through essays that range across topics from politics to farming to the Gospels, two dominant themes emerge. First, there is no substitute for local knowledge. Second, there is no way forward for individuals, communities, and nations except with humility in the face of what we do not know. These are timely lessons, and Berry's writing is so powerful yet gentle that the importance of what he says washes over you rather than hitting you in the face. This is not to suggest that Berry pulls punches. He has political views that he is not afraid to voice. He is unstinting in his criticism of the "corporate mind," and the political power that is obedient to it. He deplores the corporatization of agriculture, the reduction of values to financial transactions, and the dominance of the supposed rights of ownership, giving corporations and individuals a free pass to ignore the long-term costs and consequences of their gain-driven actions. It is hard to take issue with what he says about the ultimate reliance of all of our human efforts on healthy land and healthy communities. There are moments of great profundity in the writing of this deeply reflective participant in, and critic of, American life. You don't have to be a farmer to deeply appreciate what Berry says about proper stewardship over land. This is a book that tackles the question of what is ultimately valuable and necessary for communities to thrive. I highly recommend it, though it will disturb the complacent.

Summary of The Way of Ignorance: And Other Essays

The continuing war in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, the political sniping engendered by the Supreme Court nominations, Terry Schiavo — contemporary American society is characterized by divisive anger, profound loss, and danger. Wendell Berry, one of the country's foremost cultural critics, addresses the menace, responding with hope and intelligence in a series of essays that tackle the major questions of the day. Whose freedom are we considering when we speak of the “free market? or “free enterprise?? What is really involved in our National Security? What is the price of ownership without affection? Berry answers in prose that shuns abstraction for clarity, coherence, and passion, giving us essays that may be the finest of his long career.

Economics Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Economics Books
The Day Wall Street Exploded: A Story of America in Its First Age of Terror ImageThe Day Wall Street Exploded: A Story of America in Its First Age of Terror
by Beverly Gage
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 2009-01-28; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.33
Price in other shops: $27.95
Coal: A Human History ImageCoal: A Human History
by Barbara Freese
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2004-01-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.99
Price in other shops: $15.00
Econometric Models and Economic Forecasts ImageEconometric Models and Economic Forecasts
by Robert Pindyck, Daniel Rubinfeld, Robert S. Pindyck, Daniel L. Rubinfeld
McGraw-Hill/Irwin; Published: 1997-07-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $88.50
Elements of Dynamic Optimization ImageElements of Dynamic Optimization
by Alpha C. Chiang
Mcgraw-Hill College; Published: 1992-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $375.84
Macroeconomics ImageMacroeconomics
by Campbell McConnell, Stanley Brue
McGraw-Hill/Irwin; Published: 2006-10-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $30.00
Empire of Wealth: The Epic History of American Economic Power (P.S.) ImageEmpire of Wealth: The Epic History of American Economic Power (P.S.)
by John Steele Gordon
Harper Perennial; Published: 2005-10-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.46
Price in other shops: $15.99
A Term at the Fed: An Insider's View ImageA Term at the Fed: An Insider's View
by Laurence H. Meyer
HarperBusiness; Published: 2006-01-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.74
Price in other shops: $16.99
Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Harper Business Essentials) ImageBuilt to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Harper Business Essentials)
by Jim Collins, Jerry I. Porras
HarperBusiness; Published: 2002-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.81
Price in other shops: $17.99
Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions ImagePredictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
by Dan Ariely
Harper; Published: 2009-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.12
Price in other shops: $19.75
The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000 ImageThe Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000
by Paul Kennedy
Harper Collins Publishers; Published: 1989-03-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $18.65
Similar Books and other products
Farming: A Hand Book ImageFarming: A Hand Book
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2011-09-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.34
Price in other shops: $15.95
Life Is a Miracle: An Essay Against Modern Superstition ImageLife Is a Miracle: An Essay Against Modern Superstition
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2001-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.50
Price in other shops: $14.95
Home Economics: Fourteen Essays ImageHome Economics: Fourteen Essays
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2009-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.50
Price in other shops: $14.95
Citizenship Papers: Essays ImageCitizenship Papers: Essays
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2004-08-18; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.67
Price in other shops: $15.95
Sex, Economy, Freedom & Community: Eight Essays ImageSex, Economy, Freedom & Community: Eight Essays
by Wendell Berry
Pantheon; Published: 1993; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.98
Price in other shops: $14.00
The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays of Wendell Berry ImageThe Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays of Wendell Berry
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2003-08-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.18
Price in other shops: $15.95
What Matters?: Economics for a Renewed Commonwealth ImageWhat Matters?: Economics for a Renewed Commonwealth
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2010-05-18; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.76
Price in other shops: $14.95
Bringing It to the Table: On Farming and Food ImageBringing It to the Table: On Farming and Food
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2009-08-18; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops: $14.95
What Are People For?: Essays ImageWhat Are People For?: Essays
by Wendell Berry
Counterpoint; Published: 2010-05-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.56
Price in other shops: $15.95
The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture ImageThe Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture
by Wendell Berry
Sierra Club Books; Published: 1996-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.16
Price in other shops: $13.95
Book store. Illustrated catalog of books on different categories