As far as topics go, politics may be as divisive as they come. Still, there's no escaping the role that it plays in our lives. The texts in this collection explore the gamut of how politics shapes and reshapes societies throughout history.
Publication year 2005
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Community
Tags Race / Racism, Social Science, Business / Economics, History: World, Sociology, Social Justice, Poverty, Politics / Government
In The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time (2005), leading economist Jeffrey D. Sachs draws on his extensive global experience to identify a path to end extreme poverty within 20 years. This work is inspired by, and in some ways modeled after, the classic John Maynard Keynes essay Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren (1930). In the depths of the Great Depression, Keynes outlined a pathway to ending poverty in the industrialized countries near... Read The End of Poverty Summary
Publication year 2022
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Society: Globalization, Society: Economics, Society: Politics & Government, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger
Tags Politics / Government, Business / Economics, History: U.S., Agriculture, Class, Finance / Money / Wealth, Food, History: World, Immigration / Refugee, Military / War, Technology, Urban Development
Publication year 2006
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Identity: Indigenous, Society: Colonialism, Society: War, Society: Nation, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags History: Middle Eastern, Race / Racism, Military / War, History: World, Social Justice, Politics / Government, Religion / Spirituality
Publication year 2017
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Relationships: Teams, Relationships: Siblings, Life/Time: Coming of Age
Tags Education, Education, History: World, Biography, Social Justice, Politics / Government
In The Far Away Brothers: Two Young Migrants and the Making of an American Life (2017), Lauren Markham tells the true story of 17-year-old Salvadoran twins, Ernesto and Raúl Flores, who flee violence in El Salvador to build new lives for themselves in America. It follows the twins from their initial exodus from El Salvador, across the Rio Grande, and into the United States, where a world of both unbounded possibility and undeniable danger await... Read The Far Away Brothers Summary
Publication year 2000
Genre Novel, Fiction
Tags Historical Fiction, Latin American Literature, Classic Fiction, Politics / Government
The Feast of the Goat, written by Peruvian Nobel laureate Mario Vargas Llosa, is a work of historical fiction originally published in Spanish in 2000 and translated into English by Edith Grossman in 2001. The novel chronicles the final days of Rafael Trujillo’s dictatorship over the Dominican Republic from three points of view: through the eyes of his assassins in 1961, from the time they wait to ambush him until their final moments; through Trujillo’s... Read The Feast of the Goat Summary
Publication year 1787
Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction
Themes Society: Politics & Government
Tags Politics / Government, History: U.S., American Revolution, History: World, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction
The Federalist Papers is a collection of 85 essays, most of which were published as serialized articles between October 1787 and April 1788, by the American statesmen Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Released under the pseudonym Publius, a common name in ancient Rome derived from the word for “the people” or “of the people,” The Federalist Papers were written to persuade the voters of New York state to ratify the US Constitution. The... Read The Federalist Papers Summary
Publication year 1970
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Identity: Femininity, Identity: Sexuality, Relationships: Family
Tags Gender / Feminism, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Sociology, History: World, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics / Government
Publication year 1963
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Identity: Femininity, Society: Education, Society: Economics
Tags Gender / Feminism, History: U.S., History: World, Love / Sexuality, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Sociology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics / Government
Betty Friedan’s 1963 The Feminine Mystique is considered a classic text of feminist non-fiction. It was enormously influential in kick-starting the second wave of feminism, a movement that began in the 1960s advocating increased rights and new social roles for women. By voicing the despair that many women felt, The Feminine Mystique galvanized readers across the US to join the feminist movement and prompted others to at least to take its criticisms of mid-century American... Read The Feminine Mystique Summary
Publication year 2018
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Society: Politics & Government, Natural World: Climate
Tags Politics / Government, History: U.S., Science / Nature, Business / Economics, History: World
Publication year 1963
Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction
Tags LGBTQ, Existentialism, African American Literature, Black Lives Matter, Creative Nonfiction, Race / Racism, History: World, Social Justice, Classic Fiction, Politics / Government
James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time (1963) comprises two autobiographical essays in which the author confronts the racial issues and tensions that he believes corrupt and deform American life and the American dream. Baldwin’s essays exemplify and precursor many of the elements and arguments central to the Civil Rights movement. Please note: Throughout the text, Baldwin uses the racial labels/language common at the time he was writing. This study guide, which uses the Vintage Reissue... Read The Fire Next Time Summary
Publication year 2016
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice
Tags Black Lives Matter, Creative Nonfiction, Race / Racism, History: World, Social Justice, Politics / Government
The Fire This Time is a contemporary anthology responding to America’s turbulent racial climate. Jesmyn Ward, associate professor of English at Tulane University, edited the anthology. She has won numerous awards for her fiction writing, and in this book she seeks to present a collection of writing poetry from varied voices to illustrate the current moment and imagine a possible future. The book, which contains 14 essays and four poems, was published in 2016. In her... Read The Fire This Time Summary
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Identity: Race, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Education, Society: Politics & Government
Tags Historical Fiction, Auto/Biographical Fiction, Politics / Government, Gender / Feminism, History: World
Publication year 1689
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Relationships: Fathers
Tags Philosophy, Politics / Government
Publication year 1999
Genre Reference/Text Book, Nonfiction
Themes Society: War, Values/Ideas: Win & Lose, Society: Politics & Government
Tags History: World, Military / War, WWI / World War I, History: European, Politics / Government
Publication year 1973
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Flora/plants, Natural World: Environment
Tags Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, African American Literature, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Reconstruction Era, Love / Sexuality, Gender / Feminism, Philosophy, Philosophy, Politics / Government
“The Flowers,” a short story by Alice Walker, considers the impact of the Jim Crow South on a young Black girl’s emotional development and social awareness. Walker won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1983—along with a National Book Award—for her critically acclaimed work The Color Purple (1982). Her experience growing up poor in the segregated sharecropping community of Eatonton, Georgia, as well as her advocacy as a Womanist activist, inform the personal and social... Read The Flowers Summary
Publication year 1943
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil
Tags Classic Fiction, American Literature, Philosophy, Politics / Government, Philosophy, Arts / Culture
Published in 1945, The Fountainhead was written by Russian American author Ayn Rand (1905-1982) and focuses on the genius architect Howard Roark as he struggles to pursue a career of innovation and integrity in an increasingly hostile society of altruists and con men led by the Machiavellian humanitarian Ellsworth Toohey.In The Fountainhead, Rand promotes values such as radical individualism and the primacy of objective reason, both of which would later form the foundation of her... Read The Fountainhead Summary
Publication year 1996
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Society: Nation, Life/Time: The Future, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger
Tags History: U.S., Sociology, Politics / Government, Business / Economics, History: World, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy
Publication year 2020
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Natural World: Environment, Society: Politics & Government, Natural World: Climate, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Society: Community
Tags Science / Nature, Climate Change, Politics / Government
Publication year 1989
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Fate, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Society: Colonialism, Emotions/Behavior: Love
Tags Historical Fiction, Magical Realism, Politics / Government, Latin American Literature, History: World
Publication year 1932
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Tags Politics / Government
The German Ideology is a set of pamphlets written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in 1846. This was the first book cowritten by Marx and Engels. However, the authors could not find a publisher and the text wasn’t published until 1932. The book is divided into three main sections. The Introduction is the most widely referenced part of The German Ideology. The other sections, Volume 1 and Volume 2, are polemical responses to popular... Read The German Ideology Summary