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Eleanor in the Village : Eleanor Roosevelt's search for freedom and identity in New York's Greenwich Village / Jan Jarboe Russell.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Scribner, 2021Copyright date: ©2021Edition: First Scribner hardcover editionDescription: xii, 224 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations; 23 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781501198151
  • 1501198157
  • 9781501198168
  • 1501198165
Subject(s): Genre/Form:
Contents:
Prologue: The Gilded Age in New York City -- New York, New York -- The hard years -- The making of a heroine -- The dream of love -- Wife and mother -- Victorian restraint, upended -- Bohemians and prohibition in the Village -- Eleanor in Greenwich Village -- Polio strikes -- Franklin and Eleanor, the years apart -- J. Edgar Hoover in the Village -- Finding her own way -- The Governor's Mansion -- Eleanor Roosevelt's erotic relationship -- Eleanor as First Lady -- Eleanor and Joseph Lash -- J. Edgar Hoover takes on Eleanor -- The death of the President -- Without Franklin -- Eleanor and John F. Kennedy -- The first feminist.
Summary: "A vivid account of a critical chapter in the life of Eleanor Roosevelt, when she moved to New York's Greenwich Village, shed her high-born conformity, and became the progressive leader who pushed for change as America's First Lady. Hundreds of books have been written about Eleanor Roosevelt, yet, as America's longest-serving first lady, she remains a compelling and elusive figure. Perhaps the most mysterious period of her life began with her decision in 1920 to step away from her duties as the mother of five young children and move downtown to Greenwich Village in New York City, then the epicenter of all forms of transgressive freedom and subversive political activity in America. When Eleanor moved there, the Village was a neighborhood of rogues and outcasts, a zone of bohemians, artists, anarchists, and misfits. In the Village's narrow, meandering tree-lined streets and tiny alleys, she discovered a miniature society where personal idiosyncrasy could flourish. Eleanor joined the cohort of what then was called the "New Women" in Greenwich Village. Unlike the flappers, the New Women had a much more serious agenda, organizing for social change and insisting on their own sexual freedom. In this fascinating, in-depth portrait of a woman and a place, historian Jan Russell pulls back the curtain on Eleanor's life to reveal the motivations and desires that drew her to the Village--a world away from the Victorian propriety, debutante balls, and New York society gatherings in which she grew up--and how her time there transformed her sense of self and influenced her political outlook for the rest of her life"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library Biography ROOSEVEL E. R964 Available 33111010498620
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A "riveting and enlightening account" ( Bookreporter ) of a mostly unknown chapter in the life of Eleanor Roosevelt--when she moved to New York's Greenwich Village, shed her high-born conformity, and became the progressive leader who pushed for change as America's First Lady.

Hundreds of books have been written about FDR and Eleanor, both together and separately, but yet she remains a compelling and elusive figure. And, not much is known about why in 1920, Eleanor suddenly abandoned her duties as a mother of five and moved to Greenwich Village, then the symbol of all forms of transgressive freedom--communism, homosexuality, interracial relationships, and subversive political activity. Now, in this "immersive...original look at an iconic figure of American politics" ( Publishers Weekly ), Jan Russell pulls back the curtain on Eleanor's life to reveal the motivations and desires that drew her to the Village and how her time there changed her political outlook.

A captivating blend of personal history detailing Eleanor's struggle with issues of marriage, motherhood, financial independence, and femininity, and a vibrant portrait of one of the most famous neighborhoods in the world, this unique work examines the ways that the sensibility, mood, and various inhabitants of the neighborhood influenced the First Lady's perception of herself and shaped her political views over four decades, up to her death in 1962.

When Eleanor moved there, the Village was a zone of Bohemians, misfits, and artists, but there was also freedom there, a miniature society where personal idiosyncrasy could flourish. Eleanor joined the cohort of what then was called "The New Women" in Greenwich Village. Unlike the flappers in the 1920s, the New Women had a much more serious agenda, organizing for social change--unions for workers, equal pay, protection for child workers--and they insisted on their own sexual freedom. These women often disagreed about politics--some, like Eleanor, were Democrats, others Republicans, Socialists, and Communists. Even after moving into the White House, Eleanor retained connections to the Village, ultimately purchasing an apartment in Washington Square where she lived during World War II and in the aftermath of Roosevelt's death in 1945.

Including the major historical moments that served as a backdrop for Eleanor's time in the Village, this remarkable work offers new insights into Eleanor's transformation--emotionally, politically, and sexually--and provides us with the missing chapter in an extraordinary life.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Prologue: The Gilded Age in New York City -- New York, New York -- The hard years -- The making of a heroine -- The dream of love -- Wife and mother -- Victorian restraint, upended -- Bohemians and prohibition in the Village -- Eleanor in Greenwich Village -- Polio strikes -- Franklin and Eleanor, the years apart -- J. Edgar Hoover in the Village -- Finding her own way -- The Governor's Mansion -- Eleanor Roosevelt's erotic relationship -- Eleanor as First Lady -- Eleanor and Joseph Lash -- J. Edgar Hoover takes on Eleanor -- The death of the President -- Without Franklin -- Eleanor and John F. Kennedy -- The first feminist.

"A vivid account of a critical chapter in the life of Eleanor Roosevelt, when she moved to New York's Greenwich Village, shed her high-born conformity, and became the progressive leader who pushed for change as America's First Lady. Hundreds of books have been written about Eleanor Roosevelt, yet, as America's longest-serving first lady, she remains a compelling and elusive figure. Perhaps the most mysterious period of her life began with her decision in 1920 to step away from her duties as the mother of five young children and move downtown to Greenwich Village in New York City, then the epicenter of all forms of transgressive freedom and subversive political activity in America. When Eleanor moved there, the Village was a neighborhood of rogues and outcasts, a zone of bohemians, artists, anarchists, and misfits. In the Village's narrow, meandering tree-lined streets and tiny alleys, she discovered a miniature society where personal idiosyncrasy could flourish. Eleanor joined the cohort of what then was called the "New Women" in Greenwich Village. Unlike the flappers, the New Women had a much more serious agenda, organizing for social change and insisting on their own sexual freedom. In this fascinating, in-depth portrait of a woman and a place, historian Jan Russell pulls back the curtain on Eleanor's life to reveal the motivations and desires that drew her to the Village--a world away from the Victorian propriety, debutante balls, and New York society gatherings in which she grew up--and how her time there transformed her sense of self and influenced her political outlook for the rest of her life"-- Provided by publisher.

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