The JFK Memorial and Power in America

Scores of books have been written on John F. Kennedy. While many writers get tangled up in his mysterious and devastating assassination, M. D. Brosio takes an entirely fresh look at his life as the president of the United States.

But Brosio doesn't start with the history books. He begins with the work of an architect: Philip Johnson's JFK Memorial in Dallas. Erected in 1970, less than ten years after Kennedy's death and less than two hundred yards from where the assassination occurred, this monument has been both lauded and denigrated-much like JFK's politics.

Through Brosio's journey to discover the history and meaning behind Johnson's enigmatic work of art, he uncovers the larger significance of Kennedy's presidency. In the memorial's ever-shifting interplay of light and shadow, he recognizes a statement of power. And in Brosio's hands, the story of the JFK Memorial is revealed as a metaphor for the complicated struggle for power waged in America during the Kennedy era. This innovative merging of the worlds of art and politics inevitably brings unexpected conclusions to light, and JFK buffs will revel in a new perspective on the man while political enthusiasts will be intrigued by Brosio's unique approach.