The Middle Mind

Curtis White talked about his book, The Middle Mind: Why Americans Don’t Think for Themselves, published by Harper San Francisco. His term “middle mind” describes a portion of mainstream America that embraces concepts of art and culture that are little more than commercial commodities. The concept originated in an essay he wrote about Fresh Air radio host Terry Gross, published in the March 2002 issue of Harper’s magazine. According to Mr. White, Americans have forgotten how to think for themselves. Furthermore, Mr. White contends that the entertainment industry, academia, and political ideology contribute to this state of affairs. Following his remarks he answered questions from the audience. close