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Quote by John Shelton Reed

“Why can I write 'South' with some assurance that you'll know I mean Richmond and don't mean Phoenix? What is it that the South's boundaries enclose?”

Quote by John Shelton Reed

Book:My Tears Spoiled My Aim, and Other Reflections on Southern Culture

Work

My Tears Spoiled My Aim, and Other Reflections on Southern Culture

This book delves into the diverse aspects of Southern culture, examining its history, traditions, and societal dynamics through a series of reflective essays. more

Author

John Shelton Reed

John Shelton Reed is a sociologist born on January 8, 1942. His research focuses on sociological theory, cultural sociology, and the sociology of the American South. more

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“But I still do believe that there are useful things to say about Elvis Presley, including what his own ordinariness as a poor Southerner says about 20th-century hero-making.”

Believe Stills Poor Century Hero Including 20th Century Southerner Ordinariness Useful Things

Author:John Shelton Reed

“Dixie has just fallen to pieces. There are little patches of Dixie. But even in the heart of Dixie - in Alabama - Dixie is slipping. They've stopped using the word in commercial listings.”

Heart Littles Pieces Fallen Patches Alabama Slipping Dixie

Author:John Shelton Reed

“I can see why many Southerners, black ones in particular, don't like the implication that Southernness and the Confederate heritage are one and the same, because they're not. On the other hand, there are people who want to extirpate that completely and want folks to spit on the graves of their ancestors.”

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Author:John Shelton Reed

“I do believe states' rights was a sound doctrine that got hijacked by some unsavory customers for a while - like, 150 years or so. I'm professionally obliged to believe that knowledge is better than ignorance, but some kinds of forgetting are OK with me.”

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Author:John Shelton Reed

“I think there's a suspicion in the South of people putting on airs. You see it in most successful Southern politicians, but you also see it in someone like Richard Petty, who may be a multimillionaire stock car driver, but he's also beloved because he has a nice self-deprecatory way about him.”

People Thinking Way May Self Successful Nice Air Car Politician South Beloved Drivers Southern Suspicion Petty

Author:John Shelton Reed

“I've occasionally wished I had Caller ID. Even telemarketers, I hate to hang up on them. I try to explain I'm not interested, but they have all these canned responses so I end up having to hang up on them anyway.”

Trying Ends Hate I Hate Response Not Interested Hang Ups

Author:John Shelton Reed

“No, I got a GED in my 30s. My kids know that I never stop learning, and they know I love reading. I have books overflowing everywhere. I am current on today's events and I read the paper every day, and we talk about it, so they see that appetite.”

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“If you care to define the South as a poor, rural region with lousy race relations, that South survives only in geographical shreds and patches and most Southerners don't live there any more.”

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“Maybe we've been brainwashed by 130 years of Yankee history, but Southern identity now has more to do with food, accents, manners, music than the Confederate past. It's something that's open to both races, a variety of ethnic groups and people who move here.”

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Author:John Shelton Reed

“There's an ethic that says: 'You don't run off to the church for the sacraments of salvation, you establish a personal relationship with God. You don't run off to the courts for justice, you settle it yourself. You don't run off to labor unions to sort out your work relations, you can take this job and shove it if you don't like what you're doing.”

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Author:John Shelton Reed