LIMBO CRITICAL BOOK REVIEW

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Limbo Critical Book Review

Presented to

Tennille Lasker- Scott

Arkansas Tech University

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PS 4003

Capstone Project

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by

Lyrik Williams

T01251632

11/17/19
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Jensen, R.J.J. (2004). [Review of the book Limbo: Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar
Dreams]. Rhetoric & Public Affairs 7(3), 440-442. doi:10.1353/rap.2005.0007.

Introduction

My critical book review is on Limbo, by Alfred Lubrano. I will be giving my audience a

perspective of what has been gained from me reading the book as well as evaluating the authors

perception, and his ideal point he was trying to get through to us a reader. Alfred Lubrano was a

publisher for Philadelphia National Public radio, prior to his decision to write his book Limbo.

He wrote this book to give people two different ideas of a working class and middle-class

culture. It was to help evaluate different backgrounds and cultures. Alfred has won serval of

national and state awards while contributing to serval magazines and anthropologies on writing.

The man had a natural gift with words and putting them together in a story, he has had tons of

success and accomplishments dealing with writing. He was brought up in a world where they put

typical values for you, inherent hard work, loyalty to you family and peers you see and socialize

with from day to day. It was told by him when growing up to have respect for the religion. All

these things were told for him to obey by as he was growing up as child, things he got taught and

told to do. The goal was for him to have you understand the difference between white collard (its

collar, not collard. You need to go through and change them all) and blue collard, he was brought

up Blue collard. All of individuals expressed remarkably” similar emotions as they tell stringy

similar tales of seldom heard, dark side of mobility”(2). The goal is for you to understand people

live two different lives and describe your emotions feelings towards them, as you battle through

them culturally to see which one works best for you in the end.

Summary
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My perspective and thoughts on the book Limbo. I feel like the author wanted to be able

to get an understanding of his insight of being apart of two different cultures, the blue collard and

white. Peaceful reconciliation comes to us when we can finally meld the two people we are”

(227). So, he decided to interview the people he called straddlers. I believe he wanted a lot of

people to do self-evaluation, on their personal worth and things they think would be best for

there lives. We all have our personal insights but to interview and go about asking people

questions, making everything opened for some people. The main point being stressed to readers

and one getting interviewed was know you values and what you want, don’t battle between

trying to do how my parents raised me to trying to pursue goals and ambitions for yourself. (you

adopt the attitudes by the people held around you) 4. In the book it’s based on eight chapters and

it summarizes growing up in working class with families, the difficulties to escape families to

gain an education, the problem working class students face in college, the significant life of

staddlers, where they are introduced to middle and upper class, changes within yourself, facing

problems in workplace, maintain a relationship with family, starting or planning marriage, and

struggling with self-identity. Each chapter has its own emotional and personal feeling to certain

topics, and things being discussed about.

Critical Evaluation

The author purpose interview straddlers and get information on the two different cultured lives

being experienced. The blue collard way is how your parents raised you and certain morals they

taught you, to abide by growing up in the household. The white collard was middle class and

being able to experience things on your own and growing with your peers and trying to define

certain characteristics with certain ambitions that grow on you from being around certain people
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I think the way he goes about the chapters starting off from growing up and being raised by your

family. Then explaining the chapters about him in growing into adulthood living the college

experience, relationships with families, figuring out yourself, getting married, and starting a new

family. The book gives you good chapters of detailed information, about the different lives and

looks he was trying to give you in the sectioned chapters, to understand his purpose. I believe

that he used cultural and social perspectives in this book. I say this because he talks about being

around your family for so long, then going out into the real-world starting an occupation, and

experiencing another life. The social perspective of this part in the book was helping the

straddlers being interviewed and people reading the book to evaluate their emotions and re-

evaluate themselves as a person. A person should read this book, because it gives you a chance

to look at perspective of things your parents instilled in you and then moving forward on your

own and making changes for yourself daily and culture you start to adapt to. It can really help

you being able to evaluate yourself. I think Alfred brings out information to argue his case and

prove the point of the names he used blue collard and white. Then he gives information and

details within the chapters to relate to what is being discussed with those two words, he used and

cultural perspectives he wanted to bring out about others. I think the word description in the

chapters and him talking blue and white collard information. He specifics on how he believes we

live two different cultured lives. Alfred believed people go through certain things being

explained in the readings. Middle class kids are well groomed for another life. (65) Teachers

teach the working class and the-well-to-do differently, this work demonstrates, with the blue-

collar kids getting less attention and respect. (65) Yes, I think Alfred case should have been

understood and acknowledged from all the straddlers and readers who read this book. It states
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you can relate and be able to evaluate two different backgrounds. The reasons for the knowing of

the backgrounds is to figure the culture and lifestyle being surrounded by them.

Conclusion

I would recommend this type of book to any young adult or teenager trying to figure out

their identity. The purpose would be to gain knowledge from the story to understand the

emotions, struggles, and personal stages of life. The book tells you that yes, we have things were

taught and raised by once upon a time, but it explains the difference, and how people determine

the middle-class life you will develop from self-change from a different environment. Also,

actions, habitats and characteristics that will tend to shy away from you. Being in a certain toe of

culture you around certain different things and ways habitats will began to grow on you. I

learned from this book that adapting to certain routines and growing up is apart of being in

uncomfortable situations and learning to adjust, and to figure yourself out and learn to value

things more. I understand that culture adjusting helps you learn to define the person you are, and

being able to recognize your self-identity, goals and, ambitions.

As far as leaderships roles in the workplace. Everyone will bring you through certain

stages in life, with differences and ideas they have to offer. Many or over a little will come from

a different working class. My thing would be that learning them and knowing about how they are

to help them and me adjust to their identity and personal skills, because when it all said and

done, we will be successful in the end. I feel like if we understand we all have stages of personal

development and figure out who we are while wanting to accomplish it. We can all work and

make personal growth with learning experiences within culture and differences, like in the
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chapters. Once, you figure out d how to overcome stages and learn from it, you can see progress

being developed and questions answered.

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References

Lubrano, A. (2004). Limbo: blue-collar roots, white-collar dreams. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.