Defending the Master Race: Conservation, Eugenics, and the Legacy of Madison Grant
"Scholars have labeled Madison Grant everything from "the nation's most influential racist" to "the greatest conservationist that ever lived." His life illuminates early twentieth-century America as it was heading toward the American Century, and his legacy is still very much with us today, from the speeches of immigrant-bashing politicians to the international efforts to arrest climate change. This insightful biography shows how Grant worked side-by-side with figures such as Theodore...
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A historical rediscovery of one of the heroic founders of the conservation movement who was also one of the most infamous racists in American history Publishers Weekly Spiro's unfortunately-titled new book is a comprehensive examination of a powerful but nearly forgotten American figure, Madison Grant. A chief proponent of conservation, Grant spearheaded the creation of several national parks but also, as one of the most fervent proponents of science-based racism, introduced the world to the concept of the "master race." Grant's theories had an immeasurable effect on the turn-of-the-century world; a patrician academic who never held elected office, Grant nevertheless became a close confidante to several presidents, helping shape national policy on issues including conservation to immigration. Spiro also explores the complex history of the international eugenics movement and how it influenced organizations from the Nazi party to Planned Parenthood. Spiro's text is organized by theme, sacrificing clear chronology for a better grasp of Grant's pervasive influence-a worthwhile trade that keeps the narrative comprehensive and enlightening, peeling back layers of history to expose America's casual racism and the disturbing ways American law set the precedent for Nazi atrocities. A superb re-introduction to one of America's most complex modern figures, Spiro's account can only be faulted for a tendency to dig too deeply, occasionally stalling in minutiae. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Madison Grant: The ConsensusPt. I The Evolution of Scientific RacismCh. 1 Big-Game Hunter 3Ch. 2 The Bronx Zoo 31Ch. 3 From Conservation to Preservation 52Ch. 4 Wildlife Management 73Ch. 5 From Mammals to Man 88Ch. 6 The Eugenics Creed 117Pt. II Conserving the NordicsCh. 7 The Passing of the Great Race 143Ch. 8 Grant's Disciples 167Ch. 9 Creating the Refuge 196Ch. 10 Culling the Herd 234Ch. 11 Saving the Redwoods 266Pt. III ExtinctionCh. 12 Nordic and Anti-Nordic 297Ch. 13 The Empire Crumbles 328Ch. 14 The Ever-Widening Circle: The Third Reich 355Epilogue. The Passing of the Great Patrician 384App. A Organizations Served by Madison Grant in an Executive Capacity 391App. B The Interlocking Directorate of Wildlife Conservation 392App. C Selected Members of the Advisory Council of the ECUSA 394App. D Selected Members of the Interlocking Directorate of Scientific Racism 395Key to Archival Collections 397Notes 401Works Cited 443Index 467
\ Publishers WeeklySpiro's unfortunately-titled new book is a comprehensive examination of a powerful but nearly forgotten American figure, Madison Grant. A chief proponent of conservation, Grant spearheaded the creation of several national parks but also, as one of the most fervent proponents of science-based racism, introduced the world to the concept of the "master race." Grant's theories had an immeasurable effect on the turn-of-the-century world; a patrician academic who never held elected office, Grant nevertheless became a close confidante to several presidents, helping shape national policy on issues including conservation to immigration. Spiro also explores the complex history of the international eugenics movement and how it influenced organizations from the Nazi party to Planned Parenthood. Spiro's text is organized by theme, sacrificing clear chronology for a better grasp of Grant's pervasive influence-a worthwhile trade that keeps the narrative comprehensive and enlightening, peeling back layers of history to expose America's casual racism and the disturbing ways American law set the precedent for Nazi atrocities. A superb re-introduction to one of America's most complex modern figures, Spiro's account can only be faulted for a tendency to dig too deeply, occasionally stalling in minutiae. \ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.\ \ \ \ \ From the Publisher"Spiro's text is organized by theme, sacrificing clear chronology for a better grasp of Grant's pervasive influence--a worthwhile trade that keeps the narrative comprehensive and enlightening, peeling back layers of history to expose America's casual racism and the disturbing ways American law set the precedent for Nazi atrocities. A superb reintroduction to one of America's most complex modern figures."--Publishers Weekly\ "In this exhaustively researched biography, Spiro masterfully details Grant's ideas and accomplishments with wit and style. . . .Grant has long deserved better than he has gotten from historians and at long last Jonathan Spiro has given Madison Grant exactly what he deserved."--Journal of the History of Biology\ "In spotlighting the connection between wildlife management and eugenics, Spiro has put his finger on something important. The obsession with improving breeding stock linked Grant with Hitler on the right and with other more respectable eugenicists on the left, including Margaret Sanger (who promoted birth control) and Theodore Roosevelt (who hated it)."--The New Republic\ "Accessible and engaging . . . Spiro's biography recaptures an important strain of early twentieth-century American thought and reflects the complexity of its connections to other major ideas of the period."--Pacific Historical Review\ \ \
