Reference Reviews

Doug’s Student Reference Room

Tibet, edited by Clare Hanrahan. 209 pp. Detroit, MI. Greenhaven Press, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-7377-4240-4. $37.40.

In March of 2009, the Dalai Lama marked the 50^th anniversary of a Tibetan uprising against China by accusing the Chinese government of creating “hell on earth” for those living in Tibet, stating that the culture of Tibetans is “nearing extinction.” The protests from the previous year’s anniversary of the uprising resulted in a crackdown in which more than 200 Tibetans were killed and nearly 1,300 were injured; according to Human Rights Watch, there were also “thousands of arbitrary arrests.” The Chinese government, meanwhile, responded to the threat of protests by imposing an unofficial state of martial law in the Tibetan highlands and claimed that the Dalai Lama is fomenting violence and trying to keep Tibet stuck in a past that is autocratic and exploitative. In four related chapters, this volume from Greenhaven’s Opposing Viewpoints series explores the controversy around Tibetan autonomy through alternating pro and con essays concerning who should rule, how Tibet’s cultural diversity will fare under Chinese rule, whether or not Tibetans have benefited under Chinese rule and what the fate of Tibet’s natural environment will be. An overview at the beginning of each chapter and questions provided at the beginning of each essay will help high school readers stay focused on key ideas. Such collections make it possible for students to examine issues impartially, comparing and contrasting not only facts, but the rhetorical strategies employed. However, the juxtaposition of opposing arguments can be, in and of itself, a rhetorical strategy, a strategy that may lead unsophisticated readers to conclude that equal numbers of people support equally strong arguments on both sides. Teachers and school librarians can use this collection to help students discover not only the current state of affairs in Tibet, but the persuasive techniques commonly employed to sway the public. Each chapter concludes with a periodical bibliography and the volume concludes with a list of relevant contact organizations, a book bibliography and a general index. Recommended for high school and community college libraries.