Americans have always put the past to political ends. The Union laid claim to the Revolution--so did the Confederacy. Civil rights leaders said they were the true sons of liberty--so did Southern segregationists. This book tells the story of the centuries-long struggle over the meaning of the nation's founding; including the battle waged by the Tea Party; Glenn Beck; Sarah Palin; and evangelical Christians to "take back America." Jill Lepore; Harvard historian and New Yorker staff writer; offers a careful and concerned look at American history according to the far right; from the "rant heard round the world;" which launched the Tea Party; to the Texas School Board's adoption of a social-studies curriculum that teaches that the United States was established as a Christian nation. Along the way; she provides rare insight into the eighteenth-century struggle for independence--a history of the Revolution; from the archives. Lepore traces the roots of the far right's reactionary history to the bicentennial in the 1970s; when no one could agree on what story a divided nation should tell about its unruly beginnings. Behind the Tea Party's Revolution; she argues; lies a nostalgic and even heartbreaking yearning for an imagined past--a time less troubled by ambiguity; strife; and uncertainty--a yearning for an America that never was. The Whites of Their Eyes reveals that the far right has embraced a narrative about America's founding that is not only a fable but is also; finally; a variety of fundamentalism--anti-intellectual; antihistorical; and dangerously antipluralist. In a new afterword; Lepore addresses both the recent shift in Tea Party rhetoric from the Revolution to the Constitution and the diminished role of scholars as political commentators over the last half century of public debate.
#608735 in Books Princeton University Press 2009-07-26 2009-07-26Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.21 x .64 x 6.14l; .87 #File Name: 0691144451288 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Fascinating SubjectBy P. RichThe subject matter in this book is fascinating; particularly from one who works in the marketing department of a large company. It is full of details and provides an interesting alternate look at the development of the Gettysburg National Military Park and the tourist trade that accompanies it. The only drawback is the ponderous writing style; it can be quite difficult to read sometimes; causing the reader to backtrack in order to decipher without consulting the dictionary regularly. But that is easy to bypass as the information is extremely interesting and important to understanding why Gettysburg has become such a mecca for the history buff.8 of 14 people found the following review helpful. Worst Gettysburg book I have ever readBy A CustomerI'm trying to think of something good to say about this book but truth is I really can't. This is the worst book about Gettysburg I have ever read....and I've read quite a few. The goal of the book I thought was to trace the history of Gettysburg and how tourism and America's view of it has changed in relation to it. I couldn't wait to get this book when I read about it. I am an avid reader about Gettysburg and I was very much interested in reading this different viewpoint about it and it's history. Unfortunately this book is more of an liberalistic view of American culture using Gettysburg as a backdrop; and a rather egotistical one at that.Weeks can't help but talking down anyone and everyone associated with Gettysburg. They all seem to be below his level of understanding. The tourists who visit the battlefield are ignorants who should be going to Disneyland instead and the battlefield is now nothing but a theme park; at least according to Weeks. He even makes fun of people talking about Gettysburg on the Internet in discussion groups. Re-enactors; preservationists and park officials all are criticized by Weeks who talks condescending about all of them. He is incapable of hiding his belief that he is intellectually superior to them. I'm not a Re-enactor but I'm sure those that are are not nearly the nit wits that Weeks makes them out to be.As for the writing style; the book has all the dryness of a high school text book. Weeks has a tendency to ramble and to make matters worse he doesn't give the reader any credit for intelligence (no surprise since he doesn't give anyone in the book credit for intelligence either). To make sure we understand the point he is trying to make he will make it over and over again.I really did have high hopes for this book but unfortunately it failed to live up to any of my expectations. There are a lot of great books about Gettysburg out there. This isn't one of them.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. History; Tourism; Sacred Cows on the Run!By Theo LogosJim Weeks' has created a fascinating study of American culture; class; and capitalism; over the past one hundred and forty years by chronicling and dissecting our changing relationship to the Gettysburg Battlefield National Park. This shrine became a tourist attraction before the bodies were buried; and remains one of our best known national shrines and most popular of tourist attractions to this day. Yet for each generation; Gettysburg has had a different meaning; appealed to different social classes for different reasons; and has been marketed differently. Weeks has examined the changing appeal of Gettysburg to the American psyche to draw some conclusions on how we view our history and see ourselves through it; how and why we create our national myths; and; in short; how we imagine and re-imagine ourselves as a people.This book hit close to home for me; because my childhood experience fit squarely within its scope. My father was a Civil War buff; and our family made several pilgrimages to Gettysburg. Numerous black and white photos show me as a kid posing with Yankee cap; sword and gun on various cannons and monuments throughout the park. Our oft told family legend even claims that Dad took Mom to Gettysburg on their honeymoon. When Weeks wrote chapter six; `Automobiles and Family Touring'; he could have been working from our family albums.This is a book of social historical criticism; and if you prefer to take our national mythology at face value rather than questioning it; you should probably pass on it. Weeks is aggressive; perhaps even elitist; in the way he questions our social conventions; and he seems to like to poke sacred cows just to hear them moo. None of that changes the fact that he has written a fascinating book full of intriguing ideas. Despite his somewhat arrogant tone; Weeks' book is well worth reading.Theo Logos
