Reconciling Values and Freedom, from the President of Amway
Written: Oct 28 '07 (Updated Oct 28 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good moral values to live by
Cons: Unoriginal; Gets preachy at times
The Bottom Line: This is an average book overall. It has some good things to say, but its style isn't the most convincing.
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| Bryan_Carey's Full Review: Dick DeVos - Rediscovering American Values: The Fo... |
Politicians, social workers, educators, religious leaders, and members of the general public seem to have an obsession with the idea of values. Many feel that values have taken a back seat to hedonistic pursuits and a good number of national leaders- as well as a large percentage of the public at large- feel that America has lost its way and is in great need of a moral awakening. In this book, Rediscovering American Values: The Foundations of Our Freedom for the 21st Century, author Dick DeVos expresses what traits he feels are important not just to overall moral health, but also to gaining a better sense of personal freedom.
Basic Contents of This Book:
This 306 page book is comprised of 24 chapters divided among three sections:
Foreword: by President Gerald R. Ford
Part I: Upholding Freedom: Doing What is Right
Part II: Becoming Free: Doing What we Want as Long as it is the Right Thing to do
Part III: Preserving Freedom: Helping Others to do the Same
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Index
Part I of this book includes eight chapters and they all revolve around a common theme: personal traits/qualities that are necessary for doing what is right. The chapters here include ones on Honesty, Reliability, Fairness, Compassion, Courage, Humility, Reason, and Self- Discipline. These traits, according to the author, form the building blocks for freedom and are essential if Americans desire to continue living in a free nation.
In Part II, the book focuses on getting what we want out of life and how freedom allows us to achieve our goals. The chapters in this section include ones on Optimism, Commitment, Initiative, Work, Perseverance, Accountability, Cooperation, and Stewardship. The content of these chapters focuses on becoming free, with an emphasis on self sufficiency and determination.
In the final part of the book, the emphasis moves to the area of promoting freedom in others. Chapters here include Encouragement, Forgiveness, Service, Charity, Leadership, Opportunity, Education, and Brotherhood. The content of these chapters shifts from focus on the self to focus on others. Helping others achieve their goals and attain their own levels of freedom is important, for freedom needs to be shared and acquired by all if everyone wants to be truly free.
Final Thoughts:
The topic of freedom is one that has been discussed and written about for centuries. Different approaches have been taken on this subject with some authors stressing freedom as the right to do and say as one pleases while also agreeing to live with the consequences of one’s actions and some stressing freedom as the freedom from excessive work and oppressive obligations. Other angles have been taken on the freedom issue as well; with different authors explaining what they feel is necessary to be truly free.
This book takes a slightly different approach than others, combining the ideals of moral values and character building with the notion of freedom. Originally published in 1997, this book was written by Dick DeVos, a man whose name will grab the attention of most anyone who knows anything about multi- level marketing. DeVos is the president of the Amway Corporation, and he has lived his life in the lap of luxury. However, he has not forgotten the important values that all men and women should strive to live by, and he has included the ones he feels are most important in this book.
DeVos believes that strong character and a strong moral foundation are essential for anyone to be truly free and he emphasizes this belief on most every page of this book. Starting with honesty, integrity, fairness, etc., DeVos lays down the building blocks that he feels are most essential for humans to achieve freedom. In Devos’ mind, freedom isn’t achieved until one strives to behave according to a strong moral code that includes basic ethics and decency. In his view, one will not be truly free until these building blocks are in place. And even then, the path toward freedom will not be complete until one learns to encourage freedom in others through forgiveness, compassion, service to mankind, etc.
This book offers some good, common sense advice on old- fashioned moral values and most people would certainly agree that traits like honesty, humility, compassion, and stewardship are desirable qualities for all people to possess. But I do have some problems with the approach this book takes on the freedom issue, as well as its overall message. I can agree that most of the foundations laid out are important for achieving individual freedom, but I don’t agree with some of DeVos’s assertions about freedom in general. He uses a few too many extremes when he writes, leading the reader to believe that freedom absolutely cannot be achieved unless each and every one of the traits he mentions are firmly in place and routinely practiced. I know many people, for example, who have achieved freedom and yet are not all that humble or all that inclined toward stewardship. I also do not necessarily agree with the general direction of this book. DeVos refers to religion constantly as he writes and he seems to believe that religion is a necessary prelude to freedom. I know many people who would strongly disagree with this assertion. Not only would some disagree, they would also make some very convincing counter- arguments that religion diminishes freedom rather than enhances it.
DeVos likes to offer examples to illustrate his points and there are countless stories in this book about people DeVos has known through the years who have lived their lives according to the principles mentioned and have something to share that seems to back DeVos’s line of reasoning. These examples are sometimes helpful, but other times, they are a little too distracting. DeVos included a few too many of them, and they often get in the way of a sound discussion on the topic at hand. It almost seems like DeVos was running out of gas in a few instances; unable to offer any more personal anecdotes for his thoughts and thus inclined to offer a story about someone else instead, as a substitute for intellectual discussion.
When I think about this book, its message, and its style, one common thought keeps going through my mind: If you or I had written a book like this, it most certainly would have never been published. The reason I feel this way is because this book, while certainly sensible overall and chock full of good ideas, isn’t very original or intellectual. It doesn’t really offer anything new and what it talks about has been stated in far more convincing ways by other authors. These facts convince me that the only reason this book ever went to press is because Dick DeVos was its author. And I find this very ironic, considering that part of the book’s theme is the ideals of freedom. I guess the freedom to get a book deal is enhanced exponentially when your father is a famous businessman.
Overall, Rediscovering American Values is a book that earns a grade of “C” to “C ”, making it good enough to recommend reading if nothing else is available. What DeVos discusses in this book is generally good and his emphasis on certain character traits will likely lead to becoming a better person overall, even though what he talks about has been said a thousand times before and often in a more convincing way.
This is my second entry in Msmorvay’s Resurrecting the Oldies Write- off. To find out more, click the following link:
Resurrecting the Oldies Write- Off
Recommended:
Yes
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