John William Ward: An American Idealist
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.38 (752 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0943184177 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 260 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-09-25 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
. KIM TOWNSEND is the Class of 1959 Professor of English, Emeritus, at Amherst College. He is the author of two previous books, Manhood at Harvard: William James and Others and Sherwood Anderson: A Biography. Though officially retired, he is in his 52nd year of teaching at the college
Though officially retired, he is in his 52nd year of teaching at the college. About the Author KIM TOWNSEND is the Class of 1959 Professor of English, Emeritus, at Amherst College. He is the author of two previous books, Manhood at Harvard: William James and Others and Sherwood Anderson: A Biography.
Idealist that he was, he tried to make Amherst College a model of a democratic society.Defeated in ugly battles with the faculty, Ward resigned as president but went on to great success in the rougher world of Massachusetts politics. Ward was emblematic of his time. He presided over the once all-male college’s transition to coeducation, worked to support African-American students in their fight for equality and justice, and was arrested for civil disobedience in protest against the Vietnam War. He made headlines for his leadership of a state commission that spent more than two years investigating corruption in the awarding of building contracts, resulting in th
Ward richly deserved this biography Mary Lou McNaughton Townsend does justice to a magnificent man and a superb prose stylist. Only negative is the literary gimmick of starting with the suicide. But in Townsend's defense, the suicide was so stunning, any biographer had to try to unravel that mystery.To steal Ward's phrase, he was decent and humane. This is the story of a good man. There might be some who have their opinions about whether this biography should be last word on Ward. My ans. A Fine Biography of a fascinating man I knew Bill Ward when I worked at Amherst College from 1972 to 1977. He was smart, witty, controversial and complicated. All of these qualities are elegantly put forth by Kim Townsend, who knows Amherst College from the inside. This biography recounts President Ward life, which ended far too soon. He transformed Amherst from a fine small mens college to a more open coeducational institution. He never fell prey to the local fantasy t. Great book about a great man. Kim Townsend's book about Amherst College's fourteenth President John William Ward is a well researched and very accessible portrait of a fascinating man. Townsend does an excellent job of seeing and understanding Ward within the many broader currents of American society that erupted during his tenure at Amherst College -- and his public life afterwards. In so doing, he provides a book that is both a vivid depiction of a complicated