This is my review of Ronald Schenk's American Soul: A Cultural Narrative. [New Orleans, LA: Spring Journal Books, 2912]. This review was published in Psychological Perspectives. [57:454-459, 2014]

Here is a taste:

Until our culture sees deeply enough into this complexity, we will continue on a path of turning ourselves into what we seek to destroy. In seeking to destroy terrorism, we seek to destroy the soul. This is the fundamental insight of Schenk’s brilliant work and the full realization of this is the necessary starting point for seeking “something else.” If we seek to destroy the soul, as Ahab tries to destroy the whale, we too will go down like all great empires before us. Our ship of state, our great and glorious Pequod, is surely listing. Ahab’s doubloon suckers us all into the great enterprise and for the most part we are unknowing and seemingly unconcerned about our fate as we are entertained into a miasma of collective stupor.

Who will live to tell the tale?

The full review is available at:

ralockhart.com/WP/SchenkReview.pdf