In Drawing Life; Thomas J. Cottle examines the ways people interpret their life experiences and construct meanings for the events they have encountered. In this manner; they discover their various identities and the essence of what we call the self. In reading the sixteen life studies contained in this volume; we encounter both inner reflections as well the power of culture to shape the meanings people give to their circumstances and the events that befall them. The stories also reflect the role of human relationships and social institutions in defining our personal identities and sense of justice. What makes us unique; therefore; is the personal story we tell as it reveals our constructions of the world and of ourselves. The stories recounted in Drawing Life illuminate not only our past; but also our perceptions of the present and our imaginings of the future. In this way; they become anthologies of our life experiences.
#1134421 in eBooks 2011-08-01 2013-11-26File Name: B00GXHVCDI
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A fascinating history and delightfully engaging read.By GadflyI grew up in Hyde Park and Mount Lookout; and although I havent lived there since 1971; it was a great place to spend ones youth and it has always occupied a corner of my heart. In the mid 50s and early 60s; we kids spent endless hours of freedom unknown to todays urban children in a magnificent; wild 150 acre wooded area of Hyde Park that we called Hinkles Woods. Trying to research the history of this on the Internet; I came upon this book.Can the history of a neighborhood in what is today a minor Midwestern American city be an interesting; informative read? You bet it can. Mr. Rogers has written a meticulously researched and very engaging read of the history of wonderful and unique Hyde Park; which was first settled in 1788; five years after the Revolutionary war ended and the year before the US Constitution was ratified. It was initially called Mornington; after its first schoolhouse; which was built in 1823 at the site where the Hyde Park School stands today. The forest gave way to farmland; which in turn was developed into five immense; baronial estates. The men who built those estates are largely the industrialists who brought wealth and prosperity to the area and mass transit to Hyde Park and Mt. Lookout. Once that final communication link was established; the Hyde Park we know today; consisting largely of single-family homes and unique Hyde Park Square; was rapidly developed.Cincinnati boasts a rich and important history. Today the 65th largest city in the country; in 1840 it was the sixth largest city in America; and was the 10th largest as recently as 1900. The men in this book developed the home mortgage loan and were pioneers in mass transit and mass high quality home home instruction. They were state governors; senators; and congressmen. They were residents of Hyde Park.Most Cincinnatians; and everyone from Hyde Park/Mt. Lookout; know of Ault Park; Kilgore School; Rookwood pottery; and the Rookwood subdivision. But who knows the story of Levi Ault; the Longworths; Myers Y. Cooper; and the extraordinary three generations of Kilgores who contributed so much? (These are just a few of the fascinating people who are revealed to us in the book.) How did Mount Adams and Mount Lookout get their names; and how are those two facts related? What is the colorful history of "Suicide Bridge"? Which of Hyde Parks many churches is today the oldest extant church in the Northwest Territories? And what is the history of the mis-named Hinkles Woods?These stories and many more are in this fine book. Anyone with any connection to Hyde Park will enjoy it. It is a great gift idea.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. I bought this as a gift. If you live ...By James BraunI bought this as a gift. If you live in Cincinnati; you know Hyde Park is an iconic neighborhood with a rich history. The book tells the complete story.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Gem of a bookBy Rich LeonardiMy much-better half got me Gregory Parker Rogerss new book Cincinnatis Hyde Park: A Queen City Gem for Christmas. Its part of a series of illustrated local and neighborhood histories put out by History Press. Unlike many of the books of this genre; it is more than a collection of pretty pictures with padded captions. Mr. Rogers; a fellow Hyde Park resident; has done his homework and written a first rate history. He reveals little known details about my East side neighborhood; including the story of the tornado that ripped through here in 1917; the year our home was built. One story that really caught my eye was the "Saint Mary School State Funding Controversy;" which concerns our parish school:"The State of Ohio pays tax funds to parochial schools for textbooks; transportation; remedial reading; audio visual equipment and counseling services. In 1976; the Cincinnati Board of Education started withholding funds and school bus transportation to Saint Mary students after the predominantly white Hyde Park school accepted the predominantly white pupils from the closed Holy Cross school in Mount Adams; bypassing the mostly African American Saint Francis De Sales School in Walnut Hills. The board took the action to prevent plaintiffs in the pending desegregation case against Cincinnati Public Schools from claiming that the school district had aided a segregative act. The Holy Cross and Saint Marys parents pointed out that most Saint Francis students were not Catholic and that religious training; instruction; observation and exercises were more traditional and frequent at Saint Mary than at Saint Francis.Court prodeedings took place both in state and federal courts from 1976 through 1979. They came to an end when U.S. District Judge Timothy Hogan ruled that there was nothing discriminatory about the decision of the Holy Cross parents to send their children to Saint Mary. Hogan said [t]he Holy Cross parents and children in selecting Saint Marys School because of religious convictions were engaged in the free exercise of religion as protected by the First Amendment... The Cincinnati Board may not interfere in the exercise of such Constitutional rights. Judge Hogan returned almost $300;000 to Saint Mary and its attorneys; and ordered state funding for nonreligious services to be restored."While it makes this parent chuckle to think that religious education and practices at Saint Mary were once considered "traditional;" one can see why the school fought so hard against the board: $300;000 is no small chunk of change; even by todays standards. If you live in Cincinnati and have an interest in the history of its East side; this is the book to own.
