The Myths That Made America - An Introduction to American Studies

This essential introduction to American studies examines the core foundational myths upon which the nation is based and which still determine discussions of US-American identities today. These myths include the myth of »discovery,« the Pocahontas myth, the myth of the Promised Land, the myth of the Founding Fathers, the melting pot myth, the myth of the West, and the myth of the self-made man.
The chapters provide extended analyses of each of these myths, using examples from popular culture, literature, memorial culture, school books, and every-day life. Including visual material as well as study questions, this book will be of interest to any student of American studies and will foster an understanding of the United States of America as an imagined community by analyzing the foundational role of myths in the process of nation building.

About the author

Heike Paul teaches American Studies at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (Germany). Her current research interests are cultural mobility and interculturality, Canadian cultural studies and contemporary North American literature.

Report

"In its entirety, [the analysis offers] fascinating impressions of mentalities and ideals, prejudices and practices of cultural distinction present in the US-American society of the 19th and 20th century."

Peter Andreas, Historische Zeitschrift [German bimonthly historical_journal], 301 (2015) 20151215

Product details

• Authors: Heike Paul
• Publisher: Transcript
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 01.11.2021
• EAN: 9783837614855
• ISBN: 978-3-8376-1485-5
• No. of pages: 450
• Dimensions: 147 mm x 226 mm x 34 mm
• Weight: 714 g
• Illustrations: 43 SW-Abb.
• Series: American Studies; American Studies 01; American Culture Studies; American Culture Studies 01; American Culture Studies; American Studies - A Monograph Series; American Studies; American Culture Studies 01
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Humanities (general); Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous; Kulturgeschichte, Literaturwissenschaft, Sozial- und Kulturgeschichte, Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika, USA, Amerikanische Geschichte, Kulturwissenschaften, Geschichte allgemein und Weltgeschichte, Literaturwissenschaft, allgemein, Cultural Studies, Populärkultur, Wissenschaft / Kulturwissenschaften, Geschichte / Kulturgeschichte, Amerika (Erdteil), Trivialkultur, USA / Geschichte (bis 1945)