People of Paradox - (Cornell Paperbacks) by Michael Kammen (Paperback)
About this item
Highlights
- From the beginning, what has given our culture its distinctive texture, pattern, and thrust, according to Michael Kammen, is the dynamic interaction of the imported and the indigenous.
- Author(s): Michael Kammen
- 368 Pages
- History, United States
- Series Name: Cornell Paperbacks
Description
About the Book
Puritanical and hedonistic, idealistic and materialistic, peace-loving and war-mongering: these opposing strands go back to the genesis of our history.
Book Synopsis
From the beginning, what has given our culture its distinctive texture, pattern, and thrust, according to Michael Kammen, is the dynamic interaction of the imported and the indigenous. He shows how, during the years of colonization, some ideas and institutions were transferred virtually intact from Britain, while, simultaneously, others were being transformed in the New World. As he unravels the tangled origins of our culture, he makes us see that unresolved contradictions in the American experience have created our national style. Puritanical and hedonistic, idealistic and materialistic, peace-loving and war-mongering: these opposing strands go back to the genesis of our history.
From the Back Cover
From the beginning, what has given our culture its distinctive texture, pattern, and thrust, according to Michael Kammen, is the dynamic interaction of the imported and the indigenous.Review Quotes
A lively, wide-ranging book... highly impressive.... I wish I had written People of Paradox.
--Marcus Cunliffe "New York Times Book Review"Puts forth an interpretation that all American historical scholars will have to take seriously as they prepare their own versions of American history.
--Carl Bridenbaugh "Yale Review"