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Wilkerson, Isabel

Caste : the origins of our discontents / Isabel Wilkerson. - First edition. - xvii, 476 pages ; 25 cm

"Oprah's book club, 2020"

Includes bibliographical references (pages [397]-453) and index.

The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power--which groups have it and which do not. Wilkerson explores how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. She discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity. -- adapted from jacket

ISBN: 9780593230251 0593230256

LCCN: 2020012794

Subjects--Topical Terms:
Caste--United States.
Social stratification--United States.
Ethnicity--United States
Power (Social sciences)--United States

Subjects--Geographic Terms:
United States--Race relations

LC Class. No.: HT725.U6 / W55 2020

Dewey Class. No.: 305.5/122