Goldfarb, Jeffrey C. 1949-

PERSONAL:

Born May 14, 1949. Education: State University of New York at Albany, B.A., 1971, M.A., 1972; University of Chicago, Ph.D., 1977.

ADDRESSES:

Office—New School for Social Research, 79 5th Ave., Rm. 920, New York NY 10003. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Sociologist, educator, and writer. State University of New York at Albany, teaching assistant, 1971-72; University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, instructor in sociology, 1976-77; Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, instructor in sociology, 1976-77; New School for Social Research, New York, NY, assistant professor, 1977-1981, associate professor, 1981-89, professor of sociology, 1989-1999, Michael E. Gellert Professor of Sociology, 1999—, Eugene Lang College, faculty member, 1986-1991, chair of the department of sociology, 1992-95, 2003-06;.

WRITINGS:

The Persistence of Freedom: The Sociological Implications of Polish Student Theater, Westview Press (Boulder, CO), 1980.

On Cultural Freedom: An Exploration of Public Life in Poland and America, University of Chicago Press (Chicago, IL), 1982.

Beyond Glasnost: The Post-Totalitarian Mind, foreword by Jan Jozef Szczepanski, University of Chicago Press (Chicago, IL), 1989, reprinted, with a new preface, 1991.

The Cynical Society: The Culture of Politics and the Politics of Culture in American Life, University of Chicago Press (Chicago, IL), 1991.

After the Fall: The Pursuit of Democracy in Central Europe, Basic Books (New York, NY), 1992.

Civility and Subversion: The Intellectual in Democratic Society, Cambridge University Press (New York, NY), 1998.

The Politics of Small Things: The Power of the Powerless in Dark Times, University of Chicago Press (Chicago, IL), 2006.

Contributor to books, including Grappling with Democracy, edited by Elzbieta Matynia, Slon, 1996; and Materializing Democracy, Duke University Press, 2001. Contributor to periodicals, including Survey, Society/Transaction, American Journal of Sociology, Christian Science Monitor, Social Research, Prezeglad Polski, Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, New York Times, Sociological Forum, New York Law School Journal of Human Rights, Thesis Eleven, Voice Literary Supplement, Common Knowledge, National Forum, Respublika, and Logos.

SIDELIGHTS:

Jeffrey C. Goldfarb is a sociologist whose interests include the sociology of media, culture, and politics. He has written numerous books focused on these interests. For example, in Beyond Glasnost: The Post-Totalitarian Mind, Goldfarb explores the cultural and political ferment that occurred in Eastern Europe from the late 1970s through the 1980s as dramatic economic and political reforms took place. Within the Soviet Union, these reforms were known as Glasnost. In the process of his analysis, the author presents his ideas concerning social and political movements toward freedom as epitomized by the alternative way of thinking and living that took place in the Soviet bloc, leading at first to repression but ultimately to liberation. The author also provides an exploration of what totalitarianism entails and the limits of "newspeak," which is the deliberate use of ambiguous and contradictory language with the intention of misleading and manipulating the public. Goldfarb goes on to explore the post-totalitarianism mind and state and ends by exploring the potential of totalitarianism withering away completely. Richard Pipes, writing in the National Review, referred to Beyond Glasnost as "an essay about the breakdown of the totalitarian mentality, mainly in Eastern Europe and most particularly in Poland." Pipes added: "Goldfarb claims that the true authors of glasnost were the dissident intellectuals. He attaches special importance to the liberation of language from totalitarian control."

The author writes about political despair and the abdication of responsibility in his book The Cynical Society: The Culture of Politics and the Politics of Culture in American Life. According to the author, both despair and lack of responsibility have become aspects of contemporary American political and social life. As a result, Goldfarb charges that cynicism weakens peoples' ability to think clearly about society's strength and weaknesses. Drawing on the writings of thinkers and writers such as Alexis de Tocqueville and Toni Morrison in her novel Beloved, the author explores issues such as the decline and fall of American culture, democracy in America, the ideologies of the American "Left" and American "Right," and the crisis in education. Goldfarb goes on to explore the central role that cynicism plays in what he perceives as the modern American dilemma. In a review of The Cynical Society in Publishers Weekly, Genevieve Stuttaford wrote that the author presents his case that "‘easy cynicism’ … promotes acceptance of the way things are."

Goldfarb's book Civility and Subversion: The Intellectual in Democratic Society was called "a superb book by an exceptionally thoughtful, learned scholar" by CJS Online contributor Rhoda E. Howard. In his book, the author explores the role of the intellectual in democracy. He presents his case that modern society lacks thoughtfulness and that this deficit leads to bad governments and poor decisions by government leaders. As a result, according to Goldfarb, the intellectual is a potential agent for the growth of democracy and for making political controversy and debate more civilized. He explores how intellectualism can help subvert complacent consensus among the public. To present his case, the author explores a diverse range of intellectuals in action, from Socrates in ancient Greece to 1960s radical icon Malcolm X to the modern writer Toni Morrison. These people and others are presented as examples of intellectuals who stand somewhat apart from the masses and whose critical faculties are important for addressing society's most pressing issues.

"This is a fine book," wrote Jeremy Jennings in a review of Civility and Subversion in Social Forces. "It is also an honest book. It avoids easy rhetoric and facile posturing." Stephen T. Leonard, writing in the Australian Journal of Political Science, commented that the author presents "a conceptually rich and analytically subtle argument that is sure to provoke careful reflection (if not always full agreement) from its readers."

In his 2006 book The Politics of Small Things: The Power of the Powerless in Dark Times, the author explores how enormous change can come about in politics and government via small movements and groups who come together to produce new political alternatives. Among the author's many examples are small movements that helped dismantle the Soviet block in the late 1980s and early 1990s, such as the Civic Forum in Czechoslovakia and the Solidarity movement in Poland. He also explores American politics to show how there is an enormous dimension of power in basic human interactions. Along the way, he analyzes recent turning points, movements, and institutions, from small meetings at kitchen tables in Eastern Europe to the 2004 U.S. presidential election, primarily focusing on the campaign of Howard Dean. Although Dean failed to win the Democratic nomination, according to the author, he helped reframe the issues of debate and create a new way of mobilizing constituencies. Goldfarb also explores how political autonomy is generated to provide viable alternatives to the domination of big political machines and big government's view of terrorism, antiterrorism, and globalization.

"For Goldfarb, episodes from the late 1960s and into the 1980s are examples of what Czech poet and statesman Vaclav Havel terms ‘living in truth,’ i.e., casting off ideological blinders in favor of genuine face-to-face interaction," wrote Vince Carducci in a review of The Politics of Small Things on the PopMatters Web site. Carducci went on to write in the same review: "The mandate of living in truth poses a significant challenge to America in the wake of 11 September 2001. And Goldfarb takes pains to untangle himself from the recent ideological posturing of both the right and the left so as to not confuse fundamental democratic principles with simpleminded Americanism or its sometimes equally crude critique."

In addition to discussing such things as the Czech uprising against communism in the late 1960s, the author also explores the narratives surrounding the 9/11 attacks and how the Internet is being used to establish new political autonomies. Goldfarb also delves into the politics of small things in terms of both the liberal left and the conservative, religious right. A contributor to Tikkun called The Politics of Small Things "an absolutely inspiring book-length treatise."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Journal of Sociology, March, 1990, Daniel H. Krymkowski, review of Beyond Glasnost: The Post-Totalitarian Mind, p. 1350; January, 1992, Robert Flacks, review of The Cynical Society: The Culture of Politics and the Politics of Culture in American Life, p. 1188; November, 1999, Neil McLaughlin, review of Civility and Subversion: The Intellectual in Democratic Society, p. 849; January, 2007, Daniel Chirot, review of The Politics of Small Things: The Power of the Powerless in Dark Times, p. 1244.

American Libraries, May, 1989, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 472.

American Political Science Review, March, 1991, Charles F. Elliott, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 336; June 1992, Douglas Kellner, review of The Cynical Society, p. 536.

American Studies, spring, 1994, Jay Mechling, review of The Cynical Society, p. 160.

Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, November, 1994, Sig Mickelson, review of The Cynical Society, p. 178.

Australian Journal of Political Science, November, 1999, Stephen T. Leonard, review of Civility and Subversion, p. 478.

Booklist, February 1, 1992, Steve Weingartner, review of After the Fall: The Pursuit of Democracy in Central Europe, p. 1006.

Canadian Journal of Political and Social Theory, annual, 1990, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 230.

Canadian Journal of Sociology, spring, 1993, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 197.

Choice, June, 1992, M.G. Roskin, review of After the Fall, p. 1611; March 2007, T.D. Moodie, review of The Politics of Small Things, p. 1207.

Christian Science Monitor, July 13, 1989, Thomas D'Evelyn, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 13.

Contemporary Sociology, July, 1990, Jan T. Gross, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 544; January, 1992, Richard Sennett, review of The Cynical Society, p. 15; January 1993, Ken Jowitt, review of After the Fall, p. 37.

Foreign Affairs, annual, 1989, Lucy Edwards Despard, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 211; annual, 1992, review of After the Fall, p. 207.

Journal of Communication, spring, 1992, John Downing, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 153.

Journal of Politics, August, 1992, Michael Rogin, review of The Cynical Society, p. 906.

Library Journal, November 1, 1982, review of On Cultural Freedom: An Exploration of Public Life in Poland and America, p. 2105; April 1, 1989, Robert Decker, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 100.

National Review, June 2, 1989, Richard Pipes, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 42.

New York Times Book Review, June 14, 1992, Abraham Brumberg, review of After the Fall, p. 26.

Orbis, fall, 1989, Vladimir Tismaneanu, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 611.

Partisan Review, annual, 1993, review of The Cynical Society, p. 150.

Political Science Quarterly, winter, 1991, Richard M. Merelman, review of The Cynical Society, p. 725.

Political Studies, March, 1991, S.L. Andreski, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 182.

Prairie Schooner, winter, 1991, review of The Cynical Society, p. 725; fall, 1992, review of After the Fall, p. 535.

Publishers Weekly, April 7, 1989, Genevieve Stuttaford, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 122; February 15, 1991, Genevieve Stuttaford, review of The Cynical Society, p. 82; November 1, 1991, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 78.

Quarterly Journal of Speech, August, 1990, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 352.

Reference & Research Book News, June, 1989, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 3; October, 1992, review of After the Fall, p. 5.

Review of Politics, fall, 1992, H. Mark Roelofs, review of The Cynical Society, p. 692.

Slavonic and East European Review, October, 1990, Geoffrey Hosking, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 788.

Social Forces, September, 1992, William G. Staples, review of The Cynical Society, p. 250; December 1999, Jeremy Jennings, review of Civility and Subversion, p. 810.

Social Science Quarterly, March, 1990, Jeffrey S. Huffman, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 211.

Sociological Inquiry, spring, 1992, Ronen Palan, review of Beyond Glasnost, p. 275.

Tikkun, May-June, 2006, review of The Politics of Small Things, p. 81.

ONLINE

CJS Online,http://www.cjsonline.ca/ (March 12, 2008), Rhoda E. Howard, review of Civility and Subversion.

More Soft Money Hard Law,http://www.moresoftmoneyhardlaw.com/ (March 12, 2007), Bob Bauer, "The Politics of Interaction: Or, Still More Truth Trying to Get Through to Power," review of The Politics of Small Things.

New School for Social Research Web site,http://www.newschool.edu/gf/ (March 12, 2008), faculty profile of author and author's curriculum vitae.

PopMatters,http://www.popmatters.com/ (May 26, 2006), Vince Carducci, review of The Politics of Small Things.