Book #80: The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt

Book #80: The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt

April 6, 2014


I think this is the first full-length autobiography I have ever read. I've read a few memoirs, but Mrs. Roosevelt's story literally spans her entire lifetime. Her final chapter discusses the election of John F. Kennedy over Richard Nixon (who she did NOT like very much at all) in 1960; she died in 1962.

The simplest way to describe Mrs. Roosevelt's philosophy of life (and to use her own words): she wanted to make herself useful. She even uses her life story, this autobiography, to express her views and give advice to future Americans, with regards to how they can best be useful themselves in keeping the U.S. a free, thriving nation, and keeping the spirit of democracy alive in the world. It was interesting to read Mrs. Roosevelt's views on the threat of communism, as she became familiar with the Soviet Union when it was thriving. Today, of course, it is no more. I wonder how Mrs. Roosevelt, so insightful and open to ideas, who feel about today's issues. I feel like she'd not only have things to say about Putin and about the state of the Middle East (clever lady, she could sense trouble there), but also on human trafficking and the treatment of women the world over. She would definitely encourage young Americans to be more informed, and involved.

Mrs. Roosevelt was at times guarded in her descriptions of her personal life and relationships. But there is raw emotion in her recollections of her father, President Theodore Roosevelt's brother. Both of her parents died when she was quite young; she had a brother who died quite young as well. Her father was an alcoholic who left her in the care of her mother's wealthy family, and drinking ultimately killed him. Poor young Eleanor Roosevelt (because of course, this was her name all of her life as Franklin D. Roosevelt was her distant cousin, a fact that some of my U.S. History students kept harping on), an awkward, self-described "ugly duckling" had to be strong for herself and her surviving brother. She had many advantages growing up, to be sure, but even with money and an education at a fancy boarding school in England, with many excursions all over Europe, nothing can make up for the loss if one's parents.

Mrs. Roosevelt's descriptions of herself as an awkward child, eager to please and obedient, reminded me of myself when I was young. I also feel like I, too, live my life with a purpose. Politically, I am more passionate about issues with education and poverty on a more local level; while Mrs. Roosevelt encouraged becoming involved in struggling nations, times have changed and we aren't, perhaps, the very best examples if the successes of democracy. We need to fix ourselves, our own issues, before we try to tell any other country how to run things. I think Mrs. Roosevelt would agree with me there.

When it comes to Mrs. Roosevelt 's personal feelings in her adult life, a bit of reading between the lines is required. See, she focuses most of the book on the kind of work she did on a day to day basis. I've expressed to my students that she's the First Lady who truly set the precedent for how to be a First Lady. I wouldn't go so far as to say that Hillary Clinton owes her political career to Eleanor Roosevelt, but she did pave the way. Mrs. Roosevelt, in turn, was inspired by Edith Wilson, Woodrow Wilson's second wife (the guy was widowed and remarried while in office, yeesh). While Franklin D. Roosevelt was running a Depression-stricken, and later a warring, nation, his wife was quite busy herself in a number of political and social pursuits. She is not boastful, but describes frankly her busy schedule. She also had a disabled husband, the leader of the free world, to assist, and foreign representatives and royalty to entertain. She definitely made herself useful.

But the most personal she got, with regards to her family life, was in describing how she felt she shorted her children by trying too hard to raise them up "correctly." She acknowledges that all of her life, she was constantly developing as a person, which is so true for everyone. Her genuine modesty and quiet bravery and wisdom make her great. But she is secretive even as she is revealing. Regarding Franklin, she at one point describes a series of nightmares that he had when they were first married. She doesn't get into much detail, but I found the inclusion of that personal tidbit fascinating. Or her fights with her teenage daughter, or her fears at seeing four sons in service during World War II. As much as I admire her achievements, and her modesty of these, I enjoyed the book most when she was honest about her personal life.

Now, there is popular speculation that Mrs. Roosevelt was a lesbian. She doesn't describe any such thing in this book, of course, but I think I'd believe it. But really, who cares? What bearing does her sexuality have on the other aspects of her life, one way or the other? She was born in the 1880s...I don't think she was fully aware of her sexuality, and being "out and proud" wasn't an option. I had a conversation with a couple of colleagues recently about an individual who, in a professional setting, kept making it a point that she is gay. In annoyance, I declared that you don't have to wear your sexuality on your sleeve. I debated whether stating that I'm gay would strengthen or contradict my previous statement, so I said nothing. I don't state my sexuality but I don't hide it. I think my colleagues suspect and are fishing for it now, which is amusing. I want to think that we are past the point of "coming out." I'm gay, whatever. What damn difference does it make?

Mrs. Roosevelt represented herself just the way she wanted to be remembered. Her descriptions of the U.S.S.R., and my own recent readings of Russian literature, make me want to learn more about
Russia's history. Mrs. Roosevelt is wise when she states that in order to deal with people, you must attempt to understand them. For a rich white girl from New York, she was remarkably unpretentious in her views of people of all races, classes, nationalities, and religions (she practically declares herself an atheist). She doesn't even give herself credit here, claiming that her husband had her beat when it came to empathy for others. It's unbelievable to me that anyone could ever criticize or dislike Eleanor Roosevelt. Of course, she was often her own harshest critic.