The Tears of the White Man
| Author | Pascal Bruckner |
|---|---|
| Original title | Le Sanglot de l'homme blanc |
| Translator | William R. Beer |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Publisher | Éditions du Seuil |
Publication date | 1 May 1983 |
Published in English | 1986 |
| Pages | 309 |
| ISBN | 9782020064910 |
The Tears of the White Man: Compassion as Contempt (French: Le Sanglot de l'homme blanc. Tiers-Monde, culpabilité, haine de soi) is a 1983 book by the French philosopher Pascal Bruckner. It describes how the political left of the Western world has a sentimental view of the Third World. Bruckner criticises this and how it is used to revel in self-hatred and perceived guilt. The title alludes to Rudyard Kipling's poem "The White Man's Burden". The book was published in English in 1986, translated by William R. Beer.[1]
Reception
Kirkus Reviews wrote: "Throughout Bruckner's debate, the tone of vehement insensitivity to possible ether points of view is reminiscent of the most egoistic American political writers. But Bruckner, as a novelist, has much greater verbal resources than most political hacks. Unfortunately, most of this is lost in an inept translation: in most political books, a humdrum translation may suffice, but Bruckner is so dependent on a musketeer-like verbal flourish that only the best French translators should bare attempted this job."[2]
References
- ↑ "The tears of the white man : compassion as contempt". WorldCat. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
- ↑ "The Tears of the White Man by Pascal Bruckner". Kirkus Reviews. 1986-11-01. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
External links
- Publicity page at Éditions du Seuil's website (French)