Since the last time I whined about how little time I have to read, I've made a concerted effort to do better. Reading is my only hobby, after all. I can't neglect it, otherwise I'll be even more boring than I am now. I managed to finish a few books (see my new goodreads thingy if you actually care) and I feel better about myself now. Go me.
Anyway, as promised, I read the The Scarlet Letter over Thanksgiving. I said I'd never, ever read it, but alas, I'm happy to say I broke that promise. I'll never be a huge fan of gothic romances, but I did enjoy the book. (It was certainly better than the movie, but what book isn't?) I also sufficiently conquered my fear of Puritans that I'm now reading a history of colonial America. I now know that Pilgrims aren't the same thing as Puritans, and that Benjamin Franklin is distantly related to the founder of Folger's coffee (through his mother, Abiah Folger).
Really, the whole story is new to me. I was never taught American history in school. All I remember from elementary school is that the Native Americans invented lacrosse and the Dutch were the original settlers in Manhattan. I studied US history for a brief moment in 9th grade, but my teacher had lipstick covering half her face and that made it difficult to pay attention. Later on, we covered 20th century American history, but I pretty much missed out on everything that came before the First World War. I studied the Mexican Revolution for about six months, but no one ever mentioned the American Revolution.
And up until recently, I wasn't so interested. Pre-20th century American history always seemed like a boring subplot to whatever was happening in Europe. In college I read some Jefferson and learned a little about Constitutional history, but that's about it. It's tempting to blame my lack of curiosity on the fact that I'm the grandchild of immigrants, but really, isn't everyone? And it's not like I know anything about my actual ancestors, who did absolutely nothing of note in the shtetls of Europe and the potato fields of Ireland.
Being something of a half-breed, and the child of transient parents, I really have very little allegiance to anything. I have no religious affiliation, no hometown, dual citizenship and less than a century of accurate family history. The only thing I know for sure is that I'm an American. It might be good to know something about that.
Now, who wants to draw up a syllabus for me?
7 comments:
that question is addressed to rita, right?
what history are you reading? i've been reading the people's history of the united states for the past few months, but recently have stalled. maybe now i'll go back and we'll be learning american history together.
It's historical fiction, but I bet you'd like THE KILLER ANGELS by Michael Shaara for a good Civil War romp (it was a Pulitzer winner to boot).
You should read primary sources. Have I ever mentioned, for example, Ben Franklin's Autobiography? I've heard it's really good... If you want to get your Puritan on, there's John Winthrop's journals, or Cotton Mather. Jefferson's autobiography is good too, or the Notes on Virgina, and Crevecoeur's Letters from an American Farmer. Revolutionary history: Adams' Thoughts on Government, The Federalist, Thomas Paine's Common Sense, etc.
Apparently, there are also some secondary sources, though they are less spectacular. The Beards wrote the progressive history bible about the Constitution, but it's really long and the main point is that the Revolution was a bunch of rich white men who just did it for money and to express class dominance. Zinn emphasizes that they also oppressed people in the process, and ignored slavery. Then there are consensus historians like Hofstadter, who argue that the Revolution wasn't just a giant class conflict, but an expression of some actual ideals. Bailyn's The Ideological Origins of the Revolution is a good example of the People Actually Do Believe Ideas school. Gordon Wood is also good here, but I would read his later books since they're a little livelier. Finally, there is one of my favorites, but which probably won't be that exciting to you: T.H. Breen's The Marketplace of Revolution about the role of commerce and consumption in the lead-up to the war.
That was a pretty thorough rehashing of the bibliography of my BA. Ah, the memories.
Becky: That question wasn't only directed at Rita, because I sort of already knew what she was going to say. At the moment I'm reading a 'non-fiction as fiction' type book called Mayflower, which is actually pretty good. People's History was something I first thought of when I this whole learning thing occurred to me - is it good, or totally dry?
Drew: Ah, yes, that's been on my to-read list for years. I've heard it's really good, I'll have to move it back to the top of my queue.
Rita: Do I detect a certain amount of sarcasm in your comment? Franklin is obviously on the list, and so are Jefferson and Adams. Paine I've already read. I actually own the Federalist Papers already, and I realize that's pretty essential.
Without a class in which to discuss this stuff, though, I think secondary sources are pretty important. I think I'll stick to the Ideas Are Important School, but there's no way I'm reading Breen's book. Sorry.
Breen is not a Beardian. He's not interested in the progressive vs. consensus debate. He doesn't say ideas didn't matter or that class conflict determines everything, he's just interested in how consumption and commerce also matter. But he is pretty specific, so you should probably stick to the broader stuff first. Gordon Wood's The Radicalism of the American Revolution is a pretty lively statement of the ideas school.
Also, I noticed you've made greater use of Goodreads recently. I applaud that.
Yeah, I understood what you meant about Breen. I just don't really care about commerce, that's why I'm not going to read him. The Bailyn book sounds good and so does Gordon Wood. I will go to the library and see what I can find.
As for goodreads, it's all for you, MSI. All for you.
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