Unlikely Fame - Poor People Who Made History

This unique book depicts the stories of Americans born in poverty, who achieved national or international fame. Accessible to students and lay readers, this scholarly study describes poverty as a disability that typically stunts important areas of growth in childhood. Wagner shows how poverty hampers individuals and groups for their entire lives, even many of those who emerge from poverty. Examples of individuals with difficult childhoods who faced residual lifelong challenges are presented in the stories of 27 Americans, including athlete Babe Ruth, birth control advocate Margaret Sanger, singer Billie Holliday, author Jack London, actress Marilyn Monroe, black leader Malcolm X, singer Johnny Cash, comedian Richard Pryor, author Stephen King, and entertainer Oprah Winfrey. In over 200 engaging and accessible pages, Unlikely Fame yields insight into successful individuals and how they coped, adapted and ultimately achieved success.

List of contents

Chapter 1 Poverty as a Serious Disability; Chapter 2 Childhood Poverty; Chapter 3 Hedonism, Pain, and Suffering in Adult Life; Chapter 4 Class Consciousness; Chapter 5 Rebels against Authority; Chapter 6 Fame and Poverty; Chapter 7 Contemporary Fame and Poverty;

About the author

David Wagner, Jenna Nunziato

Summary

This unique book depicts the stories of Americans born in poverty, who achieved national or international fame

Product details

• Authors: David Wagner
• Publisher: Paradigm Publishing
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 30.08.2014
• EAN: 9781612057156
• ISBN: 978-1-61205-715-6
• No. of pages: 208
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > General, dictionaries; Non-fiction book > Politics, society, business > Biographies, autobiographies; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Sociological theories; USA, Sozial- und Kulturgeschichte, Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika, USA, Collected biographies, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / General, Biography: historical, political & military, Armut und Prekariat, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Poverty & Homelessness, HISTORY / Social History, Social & cultural history, Poverty & unemployment, Social and cultural history, United States of America, USA, Poverty and precarity