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Robert Jay Lifton Discusses how His 1961 Book is Still Relevant Today.

Psychiatrist Robert Jay Lifton. The University of North Carolina Press has just reissued Lifton's classic 1961 book, "Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism." That book examined what's commonly been referred to as 'brain washing' as it was practiced in Communist China. Lifton says the book has new relevancy now in light of the rise of 'cult' religions and the recent pro-democracy movements in China and eastern Europe. Lifton has also studied the psychological effects of the Hiroshima bombing, and he's examined the mindset of the doctors who conducted human experiments for the Nazis during World War 2. (Interview by Sedge Thomson)

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Other segments from the episode on January 17, 1990

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, January 17, 1990: Interview with Robert Jay Lifton; Review of the Nimbus "Prima Voce" series of albums; Interview with Sally Price; Review of David Lodge's novel "Souls…
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06:56

Nimbus Recaptures Classic Opera on New Series "Prima Voce."

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new series of early operatic recordings reissued on the Nimbus. Lloyd says Nimbus went to extraordinary lengths to re-record these vintage performances from the first half of the century, and the care shows.

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11:23

The Dehumanizing Western Construct of "Primitive Art."

Anthropologist Sally Price. In her new book, "Primitive Art in Civilized Places," she attacks the West's desire to own the art of native peoples. She says the West's attitude toward those peoples is one of arrogance, snobbery, and patronization; and that all too often there's no effort made to learn about, or even identify, the actual artists who's work ends up in museums and homes throughout the First World. Price's academic life alternates between her studies of the Maroon people of Suriname and teaching assignments in the United States.

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12:50

Professor Robert Jay Lifton

He is a professor of psychiatry and psychology at the Graduate School University Center and director of the Center on Violence and Human Survival at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at the City University of New York. He has written books on many topics, including the Japanese cult which released poison gas in the Tokyo subways, Nazi doctors, Hiroshima survivors and Vietnam vets. He'll discuss the emotional impact of the Iraq war on the American people.

Interview
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16:30

Robert Jay Lifton

He is professor of psychiatry and psychology at the Graduate School University Center and director of The Center on Violence and Human Survival at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at The City University of New York. He has written books on many topics, including a Japanese cult that released poison gas in the Tokyo subways, Nazi doctors, Hiroshima survivors and Vietnam vets. He will discuss the emotional impact of the Columbia shuttle disaster, as well as the impact of an impending war in Iraq, and the looming nuclear crisis in North Korea.

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06:24

Robert Jay Lifton

Robert Jay Lifton is Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology at the Graduate School University Center and director of The Center on Violence and Human Survival at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at The City University of New York. He's written books on many topics, including the Japanese cult which released poison gas in the Tokyo subways, Nazi doctors, Hiroshima survivors and Vietnam vets.

Interview

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