Editorial Reviews
Book Description
The appeal to a shared sense of origins and national purpose is part of the rhetoric of American life. Every new item on the social agenda--from the New Deal, to the Space Program, to affirmative action--has attempted to justify itself as an expression of American ideals. But the historical
source of "the American experience" is a matter of dispute: was it the founding documents, New England puritanism, transcendentalism, the sentiment of individualism, the myth of America as a redeemer nation? Indeed, the whole idea of explaining our experience by a single impulse may itself be
misconceived. If so, should we continue to justify public policy on these grounds?
Drawing together stimulating and original articles by such noted writers as McGeorge Bundy, John Diggins, E.L. Doctorow, Denis Donoghue, Gerald Holton, and David Richards, America in Theory examines the extent to which our perceptions of the past have dictated, and should continue to dictate, the
way we address the problems of the present. The essays consider general issues--can we base public policy on an "original intent" of the Framers? Is there an "American way"? How do you reconcile the tension between a fixed tradition and a pluralistic nation? How do our current concerns with
theories of interpretation shape our reading of the constitution and a reconsideration of the past?
Norman Dorsen points out that many recent policy debates have reached an impasse because opposing forces base their arguments on contradictory interpretations of the American past. And John Brademas, former U.S. Representative and current President of New York University, traces the history of
federal support for education and offers a penetrating critique of Reagan's attempts to curtail this support. In addition, there are chapters on civil rights, foreign policy, the Equal Rights Amendment, nuclear arms, and affirmative action.
As these thought-provoking essays reveal, the myths and theories that make up our idea of America are still evolving, are still open to debate two centuries after our nation's founding. Anyone interested in the meaning of the American experience, the recent direction of public policy both foreign
and domestic, and the futre of America will find this volume provocative and insightful.
America in Theory,Leslie Berlowitz,Denis Donoghue,Louis Menand,Oxford University Press, USA,0195053966,Chemistry - General,Civil rights,Constitutional history,History,Philosophy,Politics and government,Science,Science/Mathematics,U.S. Political History,United States,Political Science / Civil Rights
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