THE SEARCH FOR COMMON GROUND: An Inquiry into the Basis of Man's Experience of Community

by Howard Thurman ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 19, 1971

This study was seen by Dr. Thurman as bringing to completion the circle of his thinking over the years of his preaching, teaching, and writing as one of the foremost black religious personalities of the century. He addresses what he calls the ""paradox of conscious life"" -- the absolute necessity of affirming the uniqueness of private life, of feeling a primary part of all life. ""What is the common ground,"" he asks, ""that floats the private adventure of the individual?"" This question, he recognizes, takes on a particular urgency for black people today, as they strive to isolate themselves enough from American society to find their own identity. In pursuing this theme, he draws upon a wide range of knowledge, from medical studies to Plato's Utopia. He lightens the discourse with frequent and homely personal anecdote. His approach to the question of black identity is that of a man who has made his personal struggle through that broken and often bruising field, long before the present generation of young blacks had come on the scene. They probably will not be persuaded by his humane and gentle wisdom; but the loss will be theirs, as it will be of white persons who neglect reading this illuminating book.

Pub Date: May 19, 1971

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harper & Row

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1971

Categories: NONFICTION