A REVIEW OF THE ETHNIC GROUPS IN AMERICAN LIFE SERIES

Abstract

This essay is a review and analysis of seven textbooks published in the Prentice-Hall Ethnic Groups in American Life series under the editorship of Milton Gordon. This series is seen as a way to inform Americans, in an accessible but scholarly way, about the history, contributions, and current problems of racial and ethnic groups in this society. As noted by Gordon (Moore, 1976 :xii) in the Foreward to most of these works, the series hopefully will enable Americans (1) to understand what is means to live in a multi-ethnic society and (2) to give direction to the future which can mitigate prejudice and discrimination, particularly in regard to two possible forms of the "new Pluralism"-the first which Gordon calls cultural pluralism and the second identified by the term structural pluralism. It is hoped by the editor that this can be accomplished by having the material for each of the ethnic groups organized within a similar conceptualframework (Gordon's Assimilation Model), thereby insuring the compatibility between the works necessary for an adequate comparative analysis of racial and ethnic groups in the U.S.