Running head: LIMBO CRITICAL BOOK REVIEW 1

LIMBO

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Critical Book Review

Presented to

Jennifer Saxton

Arkansas Tech University

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PS 4543

Workplace Supervision

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by

Renee Kelley

T01106879

4/11/2017
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Lubrano, A. (2004). Limbo. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons

Introduction

In his book Limbo, journalist Alfred Lubrano explores the emotional struggles often faced

by individuals from working-class families who, frequently through great adversity, work their

way into the white-collar middle class by obtaining college degrees. Despite the satisfaction and

fulfillment gained from this significant achievement, many of what the author calls Straddlers

feel as if they do not belong in either the blue- or white-collar cultures. They often feel that

they have nothing in common with their peers in the middle class, but they also now have

difficulty relating to the family members and friends they left behind. They feel as if they are

straddling both worlds.

The author was very well qualified to write this book. He grew up in a tough working-

class section of Brooklyn, New York, and his father was a blue-collar worker (a bricklayer).

Lubrano realized from an early age that he did not fit in with the other people from his

neighborhood, and that he did not want to work in a blue-collar job when he grew up.

Lubrano graduated from an Ivy League school (Columbia University). He became a

journalist and was a staff writer for two newspapers (241). He was married to a Straddler, and

clearly had many Straddler friends. His strongest qualification, however, was the obvious depth

of feelings he had regarding the issues faced by him and many others.

Summary

The author combines his own personal story with those of 100 other Straddlers he

interviewed.
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He also includes information and opinions from numerous working class and social mobility

experts, including scholars, mental health professionals, and an economist. A passage that

provides an excellent summary of the book is: Being the the white-collar child of a blue-collar

parent means being the hinge on the door between two ways of life. With one foot in the

working class, people likeme (are) at home in neither world, living a limbo life (8).

Lubrano explains at the beginning of the book how class is also associated with a type of

culture. He believes that class is script, map, and guide that impacts nearly everything in our

lives (the manner in which we talk, how we conduct ourselves, where we live, where our kids go

to school, etc.) (5). One aspect of class culture that is mentioned throughout the book is how it is

related to what parents discuss with their children, and how these conversations take place

One of the main themes of the book is that middle-class children grow up with what one

sociologist calls cultural capital (9, 142). The authors contention is, that from the time they

are born, middle- and upper-class children are exposed by their parents to the kinds of

knowledge, skills, values, and ways of looking at the world they will need for college and

beyond. By the time they graduate from high school, they have a strong foundation for success

which includes soft skills such as confidence, interpersonal relationship skills, conflict

management skills, etc.) (Doyle, 2016). Children from the working class are therefore at a great

disadvantage for a number of reasons.

In addition to their lack of cultural capital and soft skills, the author describes the

working-class values that will later cause problems for many Straddlers, including a strong work

ethic, respect for your parents, family closeness, loyalty, and an open and honest manner devoid

of hidden agenda and messy subtext (17).

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Many high-achieving children from working-class families have an extremely difficult

time deciding whether or not to leave home and pursue a college education. Some working class

parents are supportive of their children pursuing college education. Other parents may be

strongly opposed, expecting girls in particular, to stay home. The author calls these black-hole

families because of how difficult it is for the children to pull away from them (34, 46).

A passage that eloquently describes the change that occurs in working-class college

students is: Suddenly, college opens up a world of ideas a life of the mind abstract and

intangible. The core blue-collar value and goalsare supplanted by stuff you never talked about

at home: personal fulfillment, societal obligations, the pursuit of knowledge for knowledges

sake One world open and widens; another shrinks (47).

Lubrano also describes the strong feelings of alienation and not belonging once these

individuals start college. They experience culture shock, and suffer from embarrassment and

lack of self-confidence. In addition, they are often ostracized by the other students because of the

way they talk, how they dress (no designer clothing), and numerous other things that make it

obvious they did not come from the same background as everyone else.

Once they graduate and start working in the white collar world, the Straddlers describe

how out of place they feel there also. Self-confidence issues may still be a problem. Even with

their experiences in college, many still dont have the social and interpersonal skills needed for

them to excel at their jobs. They often detest office politics and the indirect manner of

communicating that often exists in the white-collar world of work.

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Critical Evaluation

This book is extremely well written. His method of interspersing his own thoughts and

stories with those of the other Straddlers he interviewed, plus the opinions of his excellent group

of experts, allows the author to very effectively communicate a great deal of information

regarding this important topic. Lubrano has a keen sense of wit, which he uses to help

counterbalance the serious and sometimes deeply emotional nature of the issues being addressed.

Although he doesnt directly state this as a thesis, the author is clearly expressing his

opinion that many, if not most, Straddlers, never end up feeling totally at home in either of their

two worlds. He does make several specific statements regarding his goals and reasons for

writing this book. These include: 1. To write about the Straddlers in an easy to understand

manner. 2. To increase knowledge about the advantages and the adversities faced by Straddlers;

3. To help other Straddlers will find pieces of themselves in the books stories, and recognize

that their vague feelings of not fitting in either class is associated with cultural dissonance

(5, 47); 4. To address how some Straddlers manage to ultimately reconcile the duality within

them (1).

The author clearly accomplished his stated goals. The book is written in a clear and

easily understood manner. Nearly all of his interviews provide evidence of difficulties faced by a

large number of Straddlers throughout their lives. Also, many Straddlers have undoubtedly

received some degree of catharsis from reading it.

Overall, the author effectively and logically draws connections between evidence and the

claims he is making. The best evidence the author presents are all of the experts who have
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dedicated their careers to studying these issues. Also, he includes comments from a psychologist

(Laurene Finley) who specializes in treating Straddlers.

One outcome of the book not cited as a goal is the insight it provides to all non-

Straddlers. Hopefully, it has encouraged College and University staff members and fellow

students to make an effort to provide these individuals with the understanding and empathy that

they need. Limbo has also hopefully provided white-collar workers who grew up in the middle

class with some insight into why Straddlers may have no patience for office politics and

subterfuge.

Another goal of the author was to explore why some Straddlers manage to

ultimately reconcile the duality within them (1). He did talk to about half a dozen individuals

who had minimal adjustment problems, and who are also still comfortable interacting with their

families and childhood friends. However, the author then states: Unfortunately for me, (they)

cannot offer any single tip, any true guide, for being well-adjusted. For them, it just happens.

For the rest of us, however, duality is hard work (204).

Despite all of its strengths, this book also has some weaknesses. One problem is the

amount of redundancy. Examples of things that were mentioned too frequently are: the

metaphor of the rules manual that is supposedly given only to all middle-class people; the

middle-class sense of entitlement; and the continual references to middle-class assuredness

and confidence. Not only is this stereotyping, but it is simply not true.

The authors biases and tendency to stereotype come through very clearly. His failure to

offer a more balanced view is probably an indication of the tremendous amount of turmoil he
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was still experiencing. He admits at the beginning of the book to having a chip on his shoulder

(8).

One passage that really drives home the depth of the authors feelings toward the middle

class was when he mimics a typical middle-class person addressing a working class individual:

You still agonize about what was lost? Tough. The middle class doesnt care. After all, you

volunteered to leave your background behind. You must change who you are, then spend a long

time becoming someone else. And its all supposed to be invisible and seamless, without any

carping on Oprah (82).

Another weakness of the book is that the author did not use a random sample of

Straddlers. Most of them had attended prestigious colleges and universities, and the majority of

them were working in the types of careers that tend to attract intellectual snobs. He should

have interviewed more than one person in finance, for example, and also people in the military,

engineering, computer technology, civil service, accounting, and elementary/middle-school

teaching professions.

In addition to limiting his selection of interviewees to a fairly small number of career

fields, the author also interviewed primarily people who grew up in inner cities or in poor rural

communities. Had he talked to Straddlers from suburban areas, he may have found more

individuals who had minimal transition issues.

Another negative aspect of the book is the Straddlers regret over not having anything to

talk about with their family members. They come across as being as snobby as the middle-

class people they resent so much.

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Conclusion

This is an excellent book, in spite of having a few weaknesses. The issues faced by

college student from working class homes were extremely important when the author wrote this

book. It is probably an even more pressing topic today because of the tremendous loss of blue

collar jobs in the United States. Many more high achieving high school students who come from

poor and/or working class backgrounds should be encouraged by counselors to attend college if

at all possible. This is the only hope for many of them to possibly avoid having an even worse

standard of living than their parents. This is an important book for everyone to read.
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References

Doyle, A. (2016). List of Soft Skills for Resumes and Cover Letters, TheBalance, Retrieved
April 7,
2017, From https://www.thebalance.com/list-of-soft-skills-2063770.

Lubrano, A. (2004). Limbo. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.