Editorial Review
Known as the working man's poet, the Boardwalk prophet, or simply, the Boss. If "love is a banquet at which we feed," Bruce Springsteen has provided much food for thought. In this collection of metaphysical probes, a gang of E-street philosophers will undress Bruce's deeper mysteries like irresistible Jersey girls. Can Springsteen settle the nature-nurture debate through his song "Born to Run"? What do the famous philosopher Ricuoer and Springsteen have in common in their depiction of time? These die-hard Springsteen fans, who just happen to be philosophers, compile an entertaining handbook to the field of Springsteen studies, covering topics like Springsteen's connection to Marx and the proletariat, Springsteen's concept of the soul, and his status as a poet.
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Customer Reviews
The Boss transcends philosophy 
2008-07-06
I've read (at least parts of) several of the titles in the "Popular culture and philosophy" series; unfortunately, despite the general value of this sort of work, the series is very uneven. This title, I am glad to say, being both an armchair philosopher and a semi-professional Bruce Springsteen fan, is among the best entries.
The best feature of this book is that each of the authors (among the chapters I have read so far) takes Bruce seriously as what he is: a rock n' roll musician and contemporary poet. There is no attempt to make Bruce into something he is not (this point is clearly made in the first chapter). Instead, the authors stay true to the themes and issues that Bruce himself explores in his songs. In contrast to many of the other books in the series, for example, there are no chapters concerning how Bruce does (or does not) capture some element of Plato's theory of knowledge. There are, however, chapters on the nature of work and labor, the importance of human connection, the nature of freedom, and the possibility of redemption. Anyone familiar with Bruce's music will recognize these themes in his lyrics and choice of material. These themes are, moreover, profoundly philosophical, regardless of whether Bruce's explorations are as 'deep' as those of professional philosophers. (Although I would insist, as do many of the authors, that Bruce's music, in a sense, has greater depth than any philosophical treatise could achieve.)
This book is also notable, among the "Popular culture" series, for its list of contributors, which includes several prominent interpreters of classic and modern American philosophy (particularly the pragmatist tradition). This list includes: Randall Auxier and Doug Anderson (editors and contributors), John Shook, and Scott Pratt. This is possibly the best selection of professional philosophers among any titles in the series (apart from Slavoj Zizek's contribution to "The Matrix"). But this selection is also important because there is a (mediated) connection between Bruce and classic American philosophy. Though I am not suggesting that Bruce has necessarily read James, Dewey, etc., I believe that both Bruce (and other musicians who could be classed in the same genre as Bruce - including perhaps Steve Earle, Tom Cochrane, John Mellencamp, and John Fogerty - call it 'heartland rock') and James et al. share common roots in the philosophy and literature of the American Renaissance: Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Melville...
A good book, in all - though definitely for a certain 'type' of Springsteen fan. There are chapters that should appeal to any fan, but, as I suggested above, one reason for Bruce's importance may be that he pursues philosophical issues in a profoundly non-philosophical medium.
Working on the highway? Springsteen academized 
2008-06-24
Uneven collection of essays reflects the range of interests and writing abilities of the writers, almost all of whom are professors of philosophy of apparently accredited institutions of higher education, raising questions as to the current standing and academic rigor of the philosophical field of study in 2008.
Not to say this set of essays is egregiously bad, but the writing and proofreading left numerous errors in the text of the essays, a sure sign for me that I should treat the material with the same level of seriousness that its authors and editors did. There are way too many bad puns and flat attempts at word play on Springsteen songs, characters, and lyrics, starting with the vapid subtitle. Truth has an edge? It's dark there? What does that mean, other than the "yeah, we get it" reference to Springsteen's "Darkness on the Edge of Town"?
And note to most of the writers: dial back (waaaaaaaaay back) on the wanna-be-Bruce vibes already. We get it. We all wanted to be Bruce, cut someplace of our own with these drums and these guitars, but we're not, and we didn't, so let it go, and write with the seriousness and focus and academic abilities that the subject and your positions demand.
A couple of the essays did stand out for their insight and interest:
--Auxier's "Blinded by the Subterranean Homesick Muse: The Poet as Virtuous and Virtuoso" pairs Springsteen and his constant comparator Dylan in this essay introducing the classical Muses and their uses in these great poets' lyrics (as well as tracing the etymological connection between the two adjectives in his essay's subtitle).
--Auxier deconstructs Wendy, the lover to whom Springsteen sings "Born to Run", and places her (and Springsteen) in the literary canon in the essay "An Everlasting Kiss: The Seduction of Wendy."
--"Straight Time: Images of Oppression" by Luke Dick examines that phrase and the use of images in meaning, understanding, imagination and empathy (along the way explaining why Dana Carvey's impression of Jimmy Stewart works).
This is the second book of literary, philosophical and historical examination of Springsteen's music that I have read recently (see Born in the U.S.A.: Bruce Springsteen and the American Tradition), and both fall short. We are still too close the power of his performance and the peak of his musical output to truly and accurately appreciate and define it. Dylan similarly suffers in literary examinations; although Dylan is closer to the end of his oeuvre, both men still have too much to say and a love and compulsion to play that makes it impossible for even the deepest among us to summarize, categorize, or academize them.
