cover image Love to Hate: America's Obsession with Hatred and Violence

Love to Hate: America's Obsession with Hatred and Violence

Jody M. Roy. Columbia University Press, $28 (202pp) ISBN 978-0-231-12569-7

""I will not tolerate hatred silently."" ""I will own up when I lapse into one of the flawed thought processes or language patterns that underlie hatred."" ""I will consume popular culture critically."" These may be tall orders, but they're among the resolutions that Ripon College speech communication professor Jody Roy recommends in Love to Hate: America's Love Affair with Hatred and Violence. Roy looks at the glamorization of violence and hatred in American culture, showing that, whether cowboys or serial killers, violent criminals have long been ""icons of cool."" Roy also discusses how readers can disengage themselves from this national obsession, and suggests self-assessment questions and activities for both adults and children. (Oct.)